Project role
UX Lead @ Synpative Medical
Target users
Neurosurgeons,
Nurses & support staff
Methods
UX & UI Design
Visual Design
User Testing
Subject matter
Brain & spinal surgery, medical devices
Timeframe
2017 - 2019
Background
In the OR, attention is scarce and hands are often busy. The early Modus experience asked surgeons to split focus across a touchscreen, pedals, and on-screen overlays—while coordinating with scrub nurses and maintaining situational awareness. Through OR shadowing and dry-runs we saw that small UI inconsistencies and ambiguous states could cost precious seconds and trust. The overlay needed to be legible from several feet away, the operator console had to make the next action obvious, and common tasks (focus/zoom/light, alignment, presets) had to be reachable without leaving the field.
What we were solving
Reduce context switching between screen, scope, and scrub nurses
Make system state (mode, alignment, recording) unmissable at 10-ft via surgical overlay
Support hands-busy workflows with reliable voice and large-target touch
Ensure traceability and safety for regulated environments
Users & context of use
Modus V in use in an OR
Approach
We treated the redesign as an interaction-model problem, not just a visual refresh. I partnered with neurosurgeons and nursing teams across rounds of usability testing (sim and live observation) to map moments of hesitation, handoffs, and mis-taps. We re-art-directed the UI for the OR: darker chroma to avoid glare, high-contrast controls, and a typographic scale that reads at distance. Controls were reorganized around surgeon mental models—focus, zoom, light front and center; presets & alignment one tap away. Voice became a first-class modality with a constrained grammar, call-and-response confirmations, and clear on-screen feedback so staff know the system heard and acted.
Moves that made the difference
10-ft overlay with large type, iconography that tolerates occlusion, and always-visible mode & safety states
Operator console v2: a home hub for Setup → Start → Wrap-up with single-purpose screens and consistent control placement
Voice UI: push-to-talk, short verb-noun commands (“Set zoom 60”), explicit confirmations, and fallbacks
Spec & QA: component tokens, state charts, and step-by-step scripts for verification/validation and traceable defects
Operating room shadowing & case context
Service blueprinting after discovery synthesis
Voice control / microphone testing
Contextual inquiry & workflow mapping
Solution highlights
Setup Wizard streamlines pre-op tasks (case type, connections, draping) with progress & guardrails
Procedure Home tiles map to the surgeon’s flow; no hunting for critical controls
Surgical Overlay v2 is readable & data rich; color reserved for warnings & patient-critical states
Voice Control e.g. "Modus, Zoom In" covers frequent adjustments; feedback toasts on overlay
Feedback & Logging: timers, recording indicator, and event logs visible at a glance for the team and for post-case review
Modus V - Simplified touchscreen UI
Modus V - Surgeon or nurse operated
10-ft Surgical overlay UI - voice control & robotic end effector control of key surgical functions
Design to development handoff
Modus Nav UI refresh - Surgical planning
Impact
Post-redesign, surgeons and nurses described the system as “easier to drive without thinking about it.” The combination of 10-ft legibility, predictable control placement, and call-and-response voice reduced back-and-forth and allowed the team to keep eyes on the field. The design package (tokens, specs, state charts) also made implementation and verification more reliable, supporting regulatory submissions.
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