Realtime health alerts

‍In a pivotal project with EPA Victoria, our agency tackled a critical public health issue: maintaining the safety of Melbourne's beaches by ensuring timely and accurate updates on water quality. This narrative delves into our strategic approach to overcome this challenge, focusing on effective communication and technology integration.

Chapter 1 - Diving into the Challenge

‍Our journey commenced with a pressing concern: the fluctuating water quality at Melbourne’s beaches posed a risk to public health, especially swimmers. EPA Victoria needed a reliable way to disseminate updates rapidly and accurately to the community. The challenge was not only about delivering information but doing so in a way that safeguarded the wellbeing of beachgoers.

Chapter 2 - Assessing the Terrain

‍Understanding the client’s existing organisational capabilities, workflows, and bottlenecks was our first step. We conducted thorough analyses and mapped out the challenges, dissecting the internal user journeys within EPA Victoria. This phase was crucial in identifying key areas for improvement and opportunities for technological intervention.

Chapter 3 - Architecting a Solution

‍With insights gathered from the user journey analysis, we began architecting our solution. It was imperative to leverage EPA Victoria's existing platforms, thereby minimising the learning curve for the staff. Our solution was designed not just for efficiency but also for familiarity, ensuring a seamless integration into the existing operational framework.

Chapter 4 - Integration and Automation

‍The cornerstone of our approach was the integration of the existing platforms with a third-party bulk SMS supplier. This integration meant that crucial updates could be sent swiftly and broadly to the community. We implemented automated processes to enhance efficiency, ensuring that information dissemination was both rapid and reliable.

Chapter 5 - Balancing Automation with Oversight

‍Recognizing the importance of accuracy in public health communications, we built 'stop points' into the system. These were designed for human oversight and intervention, allowing for a crucial check and balance in the automated process. This hybrid approach of automation complemented by human oversight ensured that the information being disseminated was both timely and trustworthy.

Making Beaches Safer

‍The outcome of our project with EPA Victoria was a streamlined, efficient, and reliable system for updating the community about water quality at Melbourne's beaches. Our solution not only improved the speed of communication but also ensured the accuracy and reliability of the information, thus playing a vital role in protecting the health of swimmers. This project exemplified how thoughtful technology integration and strategic process enhancements can make a significant impact on public health and safety. Through our collaborative and insightful approach, we were able to provide EPA Victoria with a tool that not only met their immediate needs but also set a standard for public health communication in the community.