Kia mārama ki te hoahoa tahi
Understanding co-design
The promotion of co-design as a method to involve consumers, whānau and communities in the design, delivery and evaluation of health services has been a long-standing focus for Te Tāhū Hauora. This approach can bring people together to ensure that multiple perspectives are reflected in the design, delivery and evaluation of services.
Through our collaboration with Ko Awatea, we have delivered co-design programmes in all regions. Read more about the many completed case studies below.
We have developed a suite of free e-learning courses for co-design that are available to all health care professionals. To find out more about these modules, click here. To access the Learn Online platform, please click here.
Defining co-design
Co-design is often used as an umbrella term for participatory, co-creation and open design processes. Key components of a co-design process should involve users and staff in designing solutions, and design decisions should only be made after feedback is gathered (Ko Awatea 2022).
Reference
Ko Awatea. 2022. Co Design. URL: koawatea.countiesmanukau.health.nz/co-design (accessed 18 April 2022).
Information and resources
- Case study: Improving diabetes management for tāngata whaiora at Hauora Heretaunga (669KB, pdf) (July 2021)
- Case study: Supporting better information for palliative care (419KB, pdf)
- Case study: He waka eke noa – We are all in this together – Chadwick Healthcare Tauranga (304KB, pdf) (June 2021)
- Case study: Improving access to diabetes care for Māori and Pacific people in the Western Bay of Plenty - Western Bay of Plenty PHO (236KB, pdf) (May 2021)
- Case study: The right to have a key support person in hospital (874KB, pdf) (October 2020)
- Case study: What I wish I'd known when I received my bowel/rectal cancer diagnosis (652KB, pdf) (September 2020)
- Case study: 'Walking with you' – Preparing for cancer treatment – Northern Cancer Network, Counties Manukau Health (1.4MB, pdf) (June 2020)
- Case study: Improving use of clinical phone appointments for oncology patients – Canterbury DHB (June 2020) (633KB, pdf)
- Case study: Deep dive co-design project – Central Cancer Network (June 2020) (1.2MB, pdf)
- Case study: Post-treatment support for women with cervical cancer – Canterbury DHB (June 2020) (300KB, pdf)
- Case study: Smoke-free Phillipstown – Pharmacy @ Phillipstown (June 2019) (1.4MB, pdf)
- Case study: Gender-affirming care – Pegasus PHO (June 2019) (666KB, pdf)
- Case study: Doing things better so you feel better – Travis Medical Centre/Pegasus PHO (June 2019) (579KB, pdf)
- Case study: Youth self-harm – Christchurch PHO (June 2019) (596KB, pdf)
- Case study: ‘We’ve got your back’ – Capital & Coast DHB (June 2019) (1MB, pdf)
- Case study: Patient scheduling – Capital & Coast DHB (June 2019) (1.2MB, pdf)
- Case study: Engaging with adolescents who manage chronic health conditions - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (248 KB, pdf)
- Case study: The cancer journey discharge experience - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (301 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Rheumatic fever prophylaxis service - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (432 KB, pdf)
- Case study: A pharmacy service on discharge - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (440 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Discharge information for patients by patients - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (586 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Mental health and addiction services discharge experience - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (326 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Acute care team - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (905 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Keeping you safe during surgery brochure - CCDHB (June 2017) (614 KB, pdf)
- Case study: The colonoscopy experience - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (602 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Pacific ASH 0-4 years - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (655 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Improving repeat script process - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (401 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Location for children's blood tests - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (871 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Pharmacy service in ED - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (1 MB, pdf)
- Case study: Hutt hospital therapies outpatients - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (290 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Safe, effective and efficient discharge (SEED) team (Central PHO) (782 KB, pdf)
- Case study: ED patient experience from the front door to seeing the first treating clinician (MidCentral DHB) (846 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Severe nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (SNVP) – ‘suffering in silence’ (MidCentral DHB) (563 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Spiritual care at end of life for refugee communities (MidCentral DHB) (227 KB, pdf)
- Case study: A review of the patient experience when accessing head and neck cancer services (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (844 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Radiology service improvement initiative (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (731 KB, pdf)
- Case study: ‘Through the eyes of children’ (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (750 KB, pdf)
- Design thinking for social innovation (March 2015)
- Presentation: Taupo Hospital signage project (Lakes DHB)
- Case study: A review of Taupo Hospital Signage (Lakes DHB)
- Case study: Improving falls resilience together (St John NZ)
- Case study: Improving the patient journey with better communication (Northland DHB)
- Case study: Outpatient hysteroscopy service makes the difference (Waikato DHB)
- Case study: Working with consumers to reduce falls (Capital & Coast DHB)
- Experience Based Design: Questionnaire
- Experience Based Design: Guide & Tools
- Experienced Based Design: Concepts and Case Studies
- Creating a revolution in patient and customer experience - Implementation Guidance The Friends and Family Test
- Feeling better? Improving patient experience in hospital
- Untapped Resource
- NICE Quality standard for patient experience in adult NHS services
- Design thinking for social innovation (30KB, docx)
- A systematic review of evidence on the links between patient experience and clinical safety and effectiveness
- Developing radical service innovations in healthcare – the role of design methods
- International Perspectives on Patient Engagement - Results From the 2011 Commonwealth Fund Survey
- Which experiences of health care delivery matter to service users and why? A critical interpretive synthesis and conceptual map
- Reshaping ICU Ward Round Practices Using Video-Reflexive Ethnography
- Implementing patient-centred cancer care: using experience-based co-design to improve patient experience in breast and lung cancer services
- Judgment Sampling: A Health Care Improvement Perspective This article describes judgment sampling and its importance in quality improvement work and studies.
- Design-led service improvement for older people.
- Use of emotional touchpoints as a method of tapping into the experience of receiving compassionate care in a hospital setting.
- Improving healthcare through the use of co-design.
- Exploring the relationship between patients' experiences of care and the influence of staff motivation, affect and wellbeing.
- Facilitated patient experience feedback can improve nursing care: a pilot study for a phase III cluster randomised controlled trial.
- Poppets and parcels: the links between staff experience of work and acutely ill older peoples' experience of hospital care.
- Rethinking policy approaches to measuring and improving patient experience.
- The volume-to-value revolution: Rebuilding the DNA of health from the patient in.
- Co-design programme evaluation report 2015–16: The 2015–16 co-design programme was delivered in two DHBs over an eight-month period from October 2015 to May 2016.
- Partners in Care programme final report 2013–14
- Partners in Care programme final report 2012–13
- Patient- and family-centred care toolkit: The patient- and family-centred care toolkit from The King's Fund is a simple, step-by-step method for recording and understanding patient and family experiences.
- Are you ready to take the patient based care challenge? A DLE brochure from the Clinical Excellence Commission.
- Patientstories.org.uk : A new enterprise which uses documentary type films of patient stories to provoke discussion and debate about safety and quality issues among health care professionals.
- Health Service Co-Design : A guide from Waitemata DHB providing a range of flexible tools for working effectively with patients in service improvement work.
- Canterbury DHB Consumer Council website and terms of reference
- Involving service users in design: four steps to co-production : In this article Becky Malby from The Guardian explores how to make better use of patients' talents to improve services in health care.
- Why Hospitals Don't Deliver Great Service : A paper from the GALLUP Business Journal - improving the patient experience is about changing the hospital's culture.
2020– 21 project case studies
- Case study: Improving diabetes management for tāngata whaiora at Hauora Heretaunga (669KB, pdf) (July 2021)
- Case study: Supporting better information for palliative care (419KB, pdf)
- Case study: He waka eke noa – We are all in this together – Chadwick Healthcare Tauranga (304KB, pdf) (June 2021)
- Case study: Improving access to diabetes care for Māori and Pacific people in the Western Bay of Plenty - Western Bay of Plenty PHO (236KB, pdf) (May 2021)
2019–20 project case studies
- Case study: The right to have a key support person in hospital (874KB, pdf) (October 2020)
- Case study: What I wish I'd known when I received my bowel/rectal cancer diagnosis (652KB, pdf) (September 2020)
- Case study: 'Walking with you' – Preparing for cancer treatment – Northern Cancer Network, Counties Manukau Health (1.4MB, pdf) (June 2020)
- Case study: Improving use of clinical phone appointments for oncology patients – Canterbury DHB (June 2020) (633KB, pdf)
- Case study: Deep dive co-design project – Central Cancer Network (June 2020) (1.2MB, pdf)
- Case study: Post-treatment support for women with cervical cancer – Canterbury DHB (June 2020) (300KB, pdf)
2018–19 project case studies
- Case study: Smoke-free Phillipstown – Pharmacy @ Phillipstown (June 2019) (1.4MB, pdf)
- Case study: Gender-affirming care – Pegasus PHO (June 2019) (666KB, pdf)
- Case study: Doing things better so you feel better – Travis Medical Centre/Pegasus PHO (June 2019) (579KB, pdf)
- Case study: Youth self-harm – Christchurch PHO (June 2019) (596KB, pdf)
- Case study: ‘We’ve got your back’ – Capital & Coast DHB (June 2019) (1MB, pdf)
- Case study: Patient scheduling – Capital & Coast DHB (June 2019) (1.2MB, pdf)
2017–18 project case studies
- Case study: Engaging with adolescents who manage chronic health conditions - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (248 KB, pdf)
- Case study: The cancer journey discharge experience - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (301 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Rheumatic fever prophylaxis service - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (432 KB, pdf)
- Case study: A pharmacy service on discharge - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (440 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Discharge information for patients by patients - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (586 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Mental health and addiction services discharge experience - Bay of Plenty DHB (June 2018) (326 KB, pdf)
2016–17 project case studies
- Case study: Acute care team - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (905 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Keeping you safe during surgery brochure - CCDHB (June 2017) (614 KB, pdf)
- Case study: The colonoscopy experience - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (602 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Pacific ASH 0-4 years - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (655 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Improving repeat script process - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (401 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Location for children's blood tests - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (871 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Pharmacy service in ED - Taranaki DHB (June 2017) (1 MB, pdf)
- Case study: Hutt hospital therapies outpatients - Hutt Valley DHB (June 2017) (290 KB, pdf)
2015–16 project case studies
- Case study: Safe, effective and efficient discharge (SEED) team (Central PHO) (782 KB, pdf)
- Case study: ED patient experience from the front door to seeing the first treating clinician (MidCentral DHB) (846 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Severe nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (SNVP) – ‘suffering in silence’ (MidCentral DHB) (563 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Spiritual care at end of life for refugee communities (MidCentral DHB) (227 KB, pdf)
- Case study: A review of the patient experience when accessing head and neck cancer services (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (844 KB, pdf)
- Case study: Radiology service improvement initiative (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (731 KB, pdf)
- Case study: ‘Through the eyes of children’ (Nelson Marlborough DHB) (750 KB, pdf)
2014–15 project case studies
- Design thinking for social innovation (March 2015)
- Presentation: Taupo Hospital signage project (Lakes DHB)
- Case study: A review of Taupo Hospital Signage (Lakes DHB)
- Case study: Improving falls resilience together (St John NZ)
- Case study: Improving the patient journey with better communication (Northland DHB)
- Case study: Outpatient hysteroscopy service makes the difference (Waikato DHB)
- Case study: Working with consumers to reduce falls (Capital & Coast DHB)
Co-design resources – NHS
- Experience Based Design: Questionnaire
- Experience Based Design: Guide & Tools
- Experienced Based Design: Concepts and Case Studies
- Creating a revolution in patient and customer experience - Implementation Guidance The Friends and Family Test
- Feeling better? Improving patient experience in hospital
- Untapped Resource
- NICE Quality standard for patient experience in adult NHS services
Co-design research articles
- Design thinking for social innovation (30KB, docx)
- A systematic review of evidence on the links between patient experience and clinical safety and effectiveness
- Developing radical service innovations in healthcare – the role of design methods
- International Perspectives on Patient Engagement - Results From the 2011 Commonwealth Fund Survey
- Which experiences of health care delivery matter to service users and why? A critical interpretive synthesis and conceptual map
- Reshaping ICU Ward Round Practices Using Video-Reflexive Ethnography
- Implementing patient-centred cancer care: using experience-based co-design to improve patient experience in breast and lung cancer services
- Judgment Sampling: A Health Care Improvement Perspective This article describes judgment sampling and its importance in quality improvement work and studies.
- Design-led service improvement for older people.
- Use of emotional touchpoints as a method of tapping into the experience of receiving compassionate care in a hospital setting.
- Improving healthcare through the use of co-design.
- Exploring the relationship between patients' experiences of care and the influence of staff motivation, affect and wellbeing.
- Facilitated patient experience feedback can improve nursing care: a pilot study for a phase III cluster randomised controlled trial.
- Poppets and parcels: the links between staff experience of work and acutely ill older peoples' experience of hospital care.
- Rethinking policy approaches to measuring and improving patient experience.
- The volume-to-value revolution: Rebuilding the DNA of health from the patient in.
Co-design Partners in Care programme reviews and evaluations
- Co-design programme evaluation report 2015–16: The 2015–16 co-design programme was delivered in two DHBs over an eight-month period from October 2015 to May 2016.
- Partners in Care programme final report 2013–14
- Partners in Care programme final report 2012–13
Other information and resources
- Patient- and family-centred care toolkit: The patient- and family-centred care toolkit from The King's Fund is a simple, step-by-step method for recording and understanding patient and family experiences.
- Are you ready to take the patient based care challenge? A DLE brochure from the Clinical Excellence Commission.
- Patientstories.org.uk : A new enterprise which uses documentary type films of patient stories to provoke discussion and debate about safety and quality issues among health care professionals.
- Health Service Co-Design : A guide from Waitemata DHB providing a range of flexible tools for working effectively with patients in service improvement work.
- Canterbury DHB Consumer Council website and terms of reference
- Involving service users in design: four steps to co-production : In this article Becky Malby from The Guardian explores how to make better use of patients' talents to improve services in health care.
- Why Hospitals Don't Deliver Great Service : A paper from the GALLUP Business Journal - improving the patient experience is about changing the hospital's culture.
Published: 26 Oct 2021
Modified: 16 Apr 2025
