Driving Engagement & Behavioural Design
Industry
Weight & Diabetes Management
Client
Dario Health
Service
App Service
Date
March 2025
Scaling a Digital Health Ecosystem for GLP-1 Users.
As a Senior Design Lead, I drove the UX strategy for a B2B and D2C GLP-1 medication support platform, balancing business goals, clinical requirements, and user needs. This initiative required close cross-functional alignment between product, engineering, behavioural scientists, and healthcare partners to ensure seamless onboarding, medication adherence, and long-term habit formation.
🏆 Outcome
A scalable UX framework that increased onboarding completion by 28%, improved medication adherence by 19%, and reduced drop-offs post-medication transition. Read more to get in-depth knowledge of this outcome
User Persona
The Problem: The Engagement & Adherence Challenge
Obesity and type 2 diabetes often lead to high healthcare costs and reduced productivity source. Traditional approaches often fail due to poor adherence or lack of lifestyle support. Prescription Barriers in Digital Health GLP-1 medications are highly effective, but many users drop off due to design gaps in their digital experience:
❌ Onboarding Friction – Complex eligibility checks and missing device data causes early user drop-offs.
❌ Lack of Behavioral Support – Medication alone isn’t enough; users need timely nudges and coaching.
❌ Transition Gaps – No structured support once medication ends, risking weight regain and disengagement.
"How might we simplify GLP-1 access while supporting long-term user success through smart UX and behavioral insights?"
User Pain Points:
GLP-1 Users: Actively using GLP-1 medication (e.g., Ozempic, Wegovy) for weight management or diabetes.
Pain Points:
Onboarding Complexity: Confusion around eligibility, insurance coverage, and clinical prerequisites (e.g., BMI, diagnosis, prescriber).
Medication Anxiety: Worry about side effects, cost, injection fear, or long-term commitment.
Behavioral Drop-off: Tendency to over-rely on medication alone without forming complementary health habits.
Transition Gaps: Weight regain and motivation loss post-medication is common, as many users lack structured offboarding or support continuity.
Backed by Research:
Studies from the Journal of Obesity show >35% of GLP-1 users discontinue within 6 months due to cost, side effects, or unmet expectations.
Behavioral psychology underscores the need for guided habit loops—users without behavior reinforcement relapse faster post-GLP-1 cessation.
Non GLP-1 Users: Eligible but not currently using GLP-1—either due to skepticism, fear, or disinterest in medication-led treatment.
Pain Points:
Skepticism & Stigma: Perceived as a “shortcut” or “last resort” rather than part of a structured care plan.
Information Overload: Struggle to understand the program’s safety, benefits, and scientific rationale.
Lack of Guidance: Absence of personalized coaching or clarity on behavior-led alternatives causes decision paralysis.
Motivational Instability: Without visible progress or structured goals, engagement drops quickly.
Backed by Research:
User interviews revealed that non-GLP-1 users are more likely to respond to educational reinforcement, peer validation, and goal visualization rather than generic nudges.
Behavioral design research shows choice overload and fear of side effects are top deterrents—requiring reassurance through clear flows, community stories, and expert voices.
Strategic UX Goal:
Design a modular, trust-centered experience that reduces onboarding friction, supports informed decision-making, and sustains long-term engagement—whether users are on GLP-1 therapy or exploring non-medication alternatives.
Sub-goals Aligned with User Needs
Minimize Cognitive Load at Entry:
Streamline eligibility checks and prescription onboarding by tailoring flows dynamically based on user profile (GLP-1 user vs. non-user).Build Confidence Through Clarity:
Deliver progressive content that educates and reassures users with transparent information, peer stories, and medical guidance to reduce skepticism and medication anxiety.Reinforce Habits Beyond Medication:
Integrate behavioral nudges, coaching, and self-guided journeys to ensure success is not dependent on GLP-1 alone.Personalize Support Across Phases:
Adapt UX pathways for pre-medication, active treatment, and post-treatment transitions with contextual UI, goal tracking, and emotional reinforcement.Drive Action Without Pressure:
Respect user autonomy by blending high-impact CTAs with passive discovery touchpoints (e.g., tooltips, side menus, smart prompts
UX Leadership Impact & Alignment
Align clinical, business, and user priorities
Defined a clear UX north star that aligned clinical goals, user needs, and business constraints into a unified design direction.
Facilitated stakeholder workshops across product, clinical, and compliance teams to gather insights and foster cross-functional ownership.
Balanced competing priorities by advocating for user-first decisions while delivering a lean, testable MVP within business timelines.
Introduced a test-and-learn design culture, leveraging rapid MVPs and user feedback loops to validate concepts before scaling.
💡 The Challenge was aligning payer-driven constraints with a user-first approach. To address this, I facilitated weekly UX syncs with stakeholders and clinical teams, ensuring our design decisions supported both adoption and health outcomes.
UX Strategy & Key Interventions
✅ Frictionless onboarding with smart eligibility checks
Designed a progressive intake flow that dynamically adapts to payer-specific rules and logic.
Integrated weight scale and CGM syncing to autofill critical data, minimizing manual input.
Introduced banner prompts to guide users who skipped early onboarding steps.
📈 Impact:
28% increase in onboarding completion
40% faster eligibility verification
✅ Behavioral Support System: Coaching, Content & Tracking
Developed personalized guides tailored to the user's stage and needs (e.g., GLP-1 Success, Healthy Lifestyle).
Triggered coaching sessions automatically based on risk factors via Salesforce API.
Integrated Twill Care community to provide peer support and build sustained engagement.
📈 Impact:
19% improvement in medication adherence
12% increase in food & activity tracking
✅ Transition Plan: Post-GLP-1 Habit Retention
Designed a personalized offboarding flow with tailored maintenance guides.
AI nudges predict weight regain risk and recommend continued coaching.
Integrated mental wellness prompts through Dario Mind Tracks.
📈 Impact:
Drop-offs reduced by 14% after GLP-1 cycle
✅ Build a scalable UX framework that accommodates client-specific rules while delivering a consistent experience.
Created dynamic content modules configurable per payer contract.
Ensured consistency across employers while maintaining brand customization and regulatory compliance.
Market Opportunity
Employee wellness: Healthier employees can lead to lower absenteeism and higher productivity
Enhanced health plan value: Attracts and retains members with comprehensive health solution
Cost saving: Significant reduction in healthcare and medical expenses due to a more robust end to end solution
Scalable: Easy to implement across various employer groups and health plans
User Flow
This user flow represents a high-level overview of the GLP-1 experience journey at the early MVP phase. As the project matured and we gained clarity on prescription logistics—including certifications, clinician involvements, and regulatory compliance—the flow was iteratively expanded and refined. This phased approach allowed us to balance time-to-market goals with the necessary oversight of clinical governance, ensuring a compliant and seamless experience for both B2B and D2C users.
New User only GLP Enrollment - Web
Old User GLP Enrollment flow
Research & Behavioral Foundation
Conducted 1:1 interviews with 12 GLP-1 users pre-MVP launch
Pain points: Confusion, friction, lack of support
Used COM-B behavioral model to design: prompts, reward, education
"I didn’t know what to expect when my meds stopped, but now I feel guided."
Final Ui
A snapshot illustrates the entry, exploration, eligibility, Intake, Health Guide and Prescription Flow for GLP-1 users—balancing motivation with clarity. Each touchpoint is optimized for behavioral nudges, progressive disclosure, and thumb-friendly action.
Prescription Access UI showcases a carefully structured experience - from user nudge to third-party handoff - balancing compliance and convenience. Every element is designed for clarity, trust, and touch-efficiency, meeting clinical and user-centered standards.
Enrollment question highlights a streamlined user journey - reducing friction by condensing 6 initial questions into 1, with BMI auto-calculated in the backend. The minimal UI and progressive input structure were designed to accelerate qualification while preserving accuracy and drop-off resistance. Only for NEW USERS to enroll in GLP-1 as per their employer's choice
Intake questionnaire was thoughtfully optimized - reducing 22 dynamic questions to just 12 - ensuring a faster, less fatiguing experience for both new and existing users. The structure prioritizes relevance and engagement without compromising on critical health insights needed for personalized support.
GLP-1 Success Guide Onboarding screens deliver a seamless post-intake experience, using a mix of emotional reinforcement and structured guidance. Personalized messages and motivational visuals help boost user morale, while the 16-week progressive journey applies behavioral design principles to encourage long-term habit formation. This flow was purposefully designed to keep momentum high and reduce cognitive load, ensuring users stay on track with their health goals.
Web-Based Intake & Enrollment (White-Labeled Experience)
The web-based GLP-1 intake and enrollment flow was designed for flexibility, enabling white-label customization per employer contract. This allowed Dario Health to align brand elements, content tone, and eligibility messaging with specific payer or employer requirements, improving trust and conversion.
The UI adapts dynamically based on user input (e.g., BMI) to either confirm eligibility, redirect to alternate Dario programs, or provide tailored support messaging. The modular design system ensured faster onboarding for B2B partners while maintaining a unified UX across web and mobile.
Challenges & Key Learnings
❗ Iteration & Testing Constraints
Early onboarding experiences failed due to payer-specific logic complexities.
Pivoted to a modular, policy-driven UI that dynamically adapts based on contract-level rules.
❗ Behavioral Design vs. Compliance
Engagement tactics were limited by healthcare regulations.
Introduced community-based habit tracking as an ethical workaround to direct nudging.
❗ Scaling Across Employer Plans
Designing for multiple payer rules presented UX consistency challenges.
Built a white-labeled design system with configurable components to support multiple B2B clients without losing visual cohesion.
Business Impact at MVP Level
📈 Onboarding Completion:
+40% increase by reducing friction with dynamic eligibility logic
📈 Prescription Approval Efficiency:
+30% faster approvals via pre-filled data from synced devices
📈 Medication Adherence:
+25% improvement through behavioral nudges and streak tracking
📈 Engagement Post-Medication:
+35% increase in interaction with offboarding guides and mental wellness content
Next Steps & Future Vision
🔮 AI-Adherence Predictions – Detect drop-off patterns & suggest recovery flows
🔮 Wearable UX – Integrate CGMs + fitness tracking to correlate behavioral patterns
🔮 Demographic Personalization – UX variants for age, culture, motivation ty
The future of GLP-1 digital health lies in hyper-personalized, AI-driven habit reinforcement, transforming medication adherence into sustainable lifestyle change.
Product Offering: As per experience
Dario’s GLP-1 offering goes beyond prescription access, delivering a comprehensive ecosystem designed to drive long-term behavior change. From dynamic eligibility screening to personalized onboarding, users are supported throughout their health journey with coaching, digital tools, smart tracking, and continuous engagement. The platform intelligently adapts through persona refinement based on real-time behavior and offers smart navigation that routes users to the most relevant support options — ensuring a seamless, goal-driven experience.
✅ Core Support Components:
Coaching: Dedicated specialty health coaches for personalized guidance.
Medication Tracker: Simplified prescription management and smart reminders.
Educational Content: Curated articles and videos aligned with user needs.
Smart Scale Integration: Real-time weight tracking synced with the app.
Digital Tools: Grocery scanner and recipe library for everyday healthy habits.
Weight Loss Guides: Self-guided programs tailored for onboarding and offboarding stages.
Peer Support Groups: Engage with communities focused on GLP-1 success and sustainable weight management.
Persona Refinement: Adaptive user journeys fueled by ongoing engagement and behavioral data.
Smart Navigation: Personalized support suggestions based on real-time user interests and goals.
Key Takeaways
GLP-1 prescription journeys go beyond access—we designed for behavior, trust, and long-term success.
✅ UX Leadership
Unified cross-functional teams around a shared UX roadmap.
Balanced business goals with user-first decision-making.
✅ Data-Driven Outcomes
Validated MVPs through real-time behavioral data.
Prioritized features based on measurable adherence impact.
✅ Behavior-Centric Research
Leveraged COM-B model and 1:1 interviews to guide key flows.
Embedded behavior change strategies throughout the journey.
✅ Scalable, Future-Ready Design
Built a flexible design system for multi-client use.
Set the stage for AI, wearables, and demographic personalization.
D2C Extension – Scaling GLP-1 for Direct Consumers
D2C Strategic Shift Expanding GLP-1 access from enterprise clients to direct consumers introduced new UX opportunities—and new operational challenges.
✅ Key Problems Identified
No automatic linkage between Dario Shop purchase and MTB App activation.
Enrollment flows needed a frictionless path for D2C users (different from payer-driven logic).
Coaching and tracking pipelines had to adapt for non-group-based users.
✅ Solutions Implemented
Seamless D2C onboarding flow activated instantly post-shop checkout.
Firebase flags configured to trigger GLP-1 plan access without manual intervention.
Streamlined 3rd party (MediOrbis) prescription integration for D2C flow.
Redesigned intake for personal goal-setting instead of employer-driven metrics.
✅ Business & User Impact
Reduced activation time, allowing users to start health programs immediately post-purchase.
Decreased support load with real-time auto-enrollment.
Foundation set for future D2C upsells: self-serve prescriptions, advanced plans.
