Measuring the Impact of Design in US Health Systems
In February 2025, 42 healthcare designers and physician leaders from across the US and Canada convened at the Institute of Design for Level Up.
Post-event, participants formed writing groups and developed their ideas with support from the Equitable Healthcare Lab.
The following pre-publication is one output of a Level Up writing group, released for community discussion and review.
Pre-Publication
Measuring the Impact of Design in US Health Systems
Measuring the Impact of Design in US Health Systems:
Results of a Multi-Site Survey
By Aimee Feuser, MS; Sarah Stewart, BSBA; Meghna Prakash, MDes; and Kim Erwin, MDes
While design is increasingly integrated into healthcare delivery, methods for assessing its value have not kept pace with measurement-driven health system culture. This multi-site survey of design teams across 12 major US health systems reveals that most organizations measure design work intermittently rather than systematically, with wide variation in what and how they measure. Organizational Impact measures (workforce experience, financial performance, brand) are most commonly used, while direct measures of design activity—such as intervention development, fidelity, and value delivery—are surprisingly underused despite being frequently desired by practitioners.
The research produced a refined measurement framework with four domains and 18 indicators capturing 163 unique measures reported across health systems. Key findings suggest that design teams may benefit from Implementation Science frameworks to strengthen measurement of their work, as well as professional development to build measurement fluency. The framework offers teams a research-based tool to assess performance, negotiate meaningful metrics with leadership, and demonstrate value in a sector where measurement is both cultural expectation and strategic necessity.