HERO
A child-centred support system that makes urotherapy more understandable, more playful and less medical for children with urinary incontinence.
- Type
- Master’s thesis, Product Development
- Year
- 2025 - 2026
- Duration
- 1 year
- Team
- Individual
Making treatment something children want to take part in.
HERO is a child-centred support system that makes urotherapy more understandable, more playful and less medical for children with urinary incontinence. By making the treatment process more accessible and motivating, HERO aims to contribute to better adherence to treatment and a greater chance of successful treatment.
HERO actively involves children in their treatment, supports parents in monitoring the process and gives healthcare professionals a deeper insight into the child’s experience. At the same time, the system strengthens the diagnostic process with a functional clinical tool: the Minze Diary Pod supports data recording and communication in a child-friendly way.
From research to concept
HERO grew out of extensive research and close conversations with doctors, experts and children from the target group. Their insights were translated into ideas, characters and touchpoints, and tested along the way.
Research
Literature and desk research into urinary incontinence and urotherapy, combined with conversations with doctors and experts, to understand the treatment, the clinical needs and the context children and parents find themselves in.
Focus groups with children
Qualitative focus groups with children from the target group, supported by visual narrative methods. A drawing exercise around a superhero with a bladder problem, the “P-Hero”, created psychological distance from a sensitive subject, stimulated the imagination and helped normalise the topic. Through the qualities and powers of the characters, children shared their strengths, challenges and coping strategies.
Ideation
In idea generation sessions, the insights were translated into concepts and new ideas.
Testing
The concept and its elements were tested with children in a real care setting, to see how they responded and to refine the design towards the final concept.
The HERO kit
A complete support system that guides the child, the parents and the healthcare provider through the urotherapy journey. It consists of six connected elements:
- ALog cards
- BMinze Diary Pod & add-on
- CQuestion sheet
- DApplication
- EIntroduction video
- FMission card
Log cards
The log cards help children keep track of their urination, drinking and accident moments in a simple and visual way. By using recognisable symbols, stickers and the Minze Diary Pod, registration becomes less medical and more engaging. This gives the child more insight into their own body, while parents and healthcare providers collect clear information to better follow up on the journey.
Minze Diary Pod & add-on
The Minze Diary Pod supports the recording of urination volumes in an accurate and clinically useful way. The add-on translates this measurement into clear, visual levels that children can understand and follow more easily. This keeps the registration functional for healthcare providers, while making its use more accessible, playful and less medical for the child.
Question sheet
The question cards and accompanying videos help children reflect on their urotherapy journey in an accessible way. They make difficult or sensitive topics easier to discuss by explaining recognisable situations visually and playfully. In this way, children are encouraged to share their experiences, questions and feelings, without the conversation feeling too medical or confrontational.
Your own hero goes first
The videos support the question sheet. Each question is introduced by the child’s personal hero, who experiences a recognisable situation. Seeing their hero go through the same things makes children feel less alone and more understood, so they share their story more easily with healthcare providers and parents.
Application
The app supports the child and their parents throughout the urotherapy journey and forms the digital connection between the different elements of HERO. Through the app, the child can get to know the P-Heroes, watch the introduction video and receive step-by-step guidance on how to use the log cards, question cards and the Minze Diary Pod.
For parents, the app makes the journey more structured and understandable. They can set log days, follow up on reminders and better understand what is expected of them and their child. By bringing information, guidance and motivation together in one place, the journey becomes more accessible and less burdensome.
Introduction video
The introduction video welcomes the child into the world of HERO. By framing the treatment visually and playfully, the first barrier is lowered and the child gains more confidence to participate actively.
Watch the introduction video on YouTube ↗
Offboarding: mission card
HERO also thinks about the end of the journey. For the offboarding, a mission card was designed that gives children a sense of reward and recognition for their effort. The card rewards the behaviour, not the results.
