Member Portal: Physician Search

Overview

This project was a major initiative focused on automating and enhancing the Physician Search and Selection experience for Blue Shield of California members across all lines of business. This initiative centered around modernizing the member experience to deliver a real-time, self-service Physician Search and Selection tool.

My role

I led the product design effort to transform Blue Shield of California's legacy Physician Search and Selection experience. This initiative included a systems migration so we could deliver a real-time, transactional, self-service tool. The final solution unlocked massive operational efficiencies and gave members back their time and trust.

Health Tech

Legacy Modernization

Self-Service Design

Website screenshot of Blue California healthcare services, showing search options to find doctors, virtual care, wellness programs, and nurse advice line with a nurse consulting a patient in a medical office

  • Key Contributions

    Role: Lead Product Designer

    ✓ I drove the transformation of a legacy doctor search and selection process into a modern, real-time, self-service experience across all lines of business.

    ✓ I designed a new UX flow built on accurate, real-time provider data, directly fostering member trust and ensuring critical doctor selections were always transparent.

    ✓ I achieved a 16% increase in the online completion rate (a core project KPI) by delivering robust, automated self-service options.

    ✓ I significantly reduced submission-related user errors (by 11%), directly mitigating call volume and contributing to approx $50,000 in estimated annual operational savings.

  • Problem

    The existing Physician Selection feature was a textbook example of a fragile, outdated legacy system. It was actively generating user frustration and costing the business money.

    We faced three critical issues with the current experience:

    1. Inaccurate back-end logic surfaced doctors who weren't accepting new patients.

    2. The UI was riddled with outdated design, vague copy, and no critical information (like a new physician's effective start date).

    3. The high rate of user errors forced members off the site and straight into the call center queue.

The Solution

I designed and launched a complete overhaul of the online doctor-changing process. My goal was to make the experience frictionless, real-time, and accurate.

The new flow instantly confirms a doctor's availability and clearly communicates the selection's effective date. This transformed the member experience from a frustrating error loop into a fast, trustworthy self-service option that simply works.

Impact

  • 16%

    Increase: Online Completion Rate

    Successfully improved the member conversion rate for online physician selection (core project KPI).

  • 11%

    Decrease: User Error Rate

    Reduced submission-related support calls by 11% immediately after launch.

  • $50,000

    Saved: Annual Operational Cost

    Reduced complex issues routed to the call center from an average of 1,000 monthly down to approx 300.