The booking flow was the app's front door, and most patients were turning back at it. Only 23% of people who opened the app to book an appointment actually completed the process, which meant the majority of every session ended without the one outcome the app existed to deliver. Whatever was breaking down was breaking down early and often, not in some rarely used corner of the product.

The failure fell hardest on patients aged 45 and over, a group healthcare apps cannot afford to lose. These patients reported being unable to complete basic tasks without someone else's assistance, which meant the app was creating extra work for staff and family members rather than removing it. An app meant to make healthcare more accessible was instead adding a dependency many patients had not needed before.

We grounded the redesign in accessibility-focused user research with 30 participants, weighting the sample toward the older patients the existing app had failed most. That research shaped every subsequent decision, rather than treating accessibility as a compliance checklist applied after the design was already finished, since patients had already told us exactly where the previous version broke down.

The complete app was then rebuilt to WCAG 2.1 AA standards rather than patched screen by screen. The booking flow was simplified into fewer, clearer steps, clinical and administrative content was rewritten in plain language throughout, and a new health summary dashboard gave patients a single, understandable view of their care instead of scattered menus.