Design Thinking for Enterprise – Business Report Assignment
Design Thinking for Enterprise – Business Essay
Title: An exploration of a specific and local problem using the 5W&H model.
Choose one of the United Nations (UN) Sustainability Development Goals (SDG) from the following website URL: https://sdgs.un.org/goals. Then select a specific local news story as a focus to develop the first three aspects of Design Thinking (Include elements of empathy, definition, and ideation).
Summary: You will select and describe one SDG and link it to a range of issues that you are interested in, have read about or are aware of. Next you will take a deep dive into the issues surrounding the SDG (at a local level) using the 5W&H model. Then finally and tentatively, explore some potential ideas that would theoretically help reduce the impact of the problem in your capacity as a Design Thinker.
Rationale: Design Thinkers often use the 5W&1H model to explore complex issues in greater detail. This is an opportunity for you to consider an aspect of sustainability in depth and to understand how Design Thinking may help to provide solutions to “wicked” problems.
Section A: Current State Description (50% of Grade)
Introduction: Describe the “current state” of your chosen project. Take a deep dive into issues and show how they relate to a single, defined UN SDG. Provide the reader with context for further discussion and potential scope and impact. You should narrow your focus to a local issue(s) in local news media. Guide: We suggest researching in a 50-mile radius of your normal campus or hometown.
Then: Creatively and thoughtfully explore core issues using the 5W&H as section sub-headings below using materials and theories introduced on the course.
o What needs to be done?
o Where should it be done?
o When does it need to be done?
o Who should do it?
o How should it be done?
o Why does it need to be done?
Section B. Future State Ideation (50% of Grade)
• What if? Now discuss your ideas for a “future state” solution (Based on Section A). In this section, generate a “rich picture” (in both words and illustration) that illuminates the future state potential of your ideation. Focus on laying out your ambition and the potential of your ideas rather than fine detail. Also, highlight any Design Thinking methods you found useful as you proceed. However, please be mindful to consider genuine viability, rather than simply using a lot of unsupported superlatives to describe potential.
Note: This business report is your first iteration only. It may become the focus of assignment 2. Assignment 2 will ask you to develop your initial ideas as part of a team to produce a desirable (human), feasible (technical) and viable (business) “call to action”.
Submission Checklist
• Include (Insert) a front cover with your Student Number, Title, and brief Abstract (You may also add impact with an original image or artwork and a contents list).
• Submit through Turnitin via VLE before the due date.
• Harvard referencing is required for all cited materials and quotes.
o Use in-text citations to show the reader what you have found (include a few different academic sources and materials).
o Provide a list of these references at the end of the report. This should follow Harvard conventions and be presented in alphabetical order.
o Where possible, try to use materials sourced through the Newton Park Library databases (rather than Search Engine hits) and please also avoid paraphrasing large sections of text from single sources.
o Write in your own words and bring a variety of perspectives into your submission.
Solution: Design Thinking for Enterprise – Business Report Assignment
Abstract
This paper explores, defines, and analyses, health inequality in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) and its relationship with UN sustainable development goals (SDGs). A double diamond design thinking model consists of four steps and informs two stages namely (a) discover challenges and needs of people in B&NES to define opportunities and (b) develop and test ideas to deliver a solution. High poverty in the deprived areas affects fulfilling the SDG-3 and the effect of inequality has been exacerbated by the recent cost of living crisis and pandemic. B&NES council has an opportunity to reduce inequality in the access to high-quality healthcare services. With a partnership with other key stakeholders, funding to increase access to preventive and treatment care can reduce high risks of mortality and morbidity in deprived areas. The future state of ideation is to fulfil disease-related SDG-3 targets by 2030 in B&NES with a low level of inequality. Since socioeconomic, environmental and behavioural factors influence the healthcare threats, some of the key solutions include access to healthcare services through affordability, reduction of healthcare hazards, and prevention and treatment of substance abuse and lifestyle challenges.
Section A: Current State Description
The threat of inequality in noncommunicable disease(NCD) risks between the least and most deprived populations in Bath and NorthEast Somerset (B&NES) was widened by the COVID-19 pandemic. In B&NES individuals including children, and young adults suffer from heart or breathing problems. Those in poverty are at greater risk of health challenges than the general population. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) reported that 13% of 31990 people living in poverty in 2021 had a respiratory condition or cardiovascular challenge (Grimond, 2023). Further, in 2024 there was an admission rate of 233.5 per 1000 for coronary heart disease in B&NES (GOV.UK, 2024). According to the NHS (2023), every four hours a life is lost to a heart or circulatory disease in B&NES. Although Grimond (2023) reports there is no significant difference in the rates of cardiovascular issues for poverty households than in general populations the risks of hospitalisations and death are higher. There are more dangerous health consequences for children living in high-poverty areas. For instance, children living in deprived areas have higher risks of living with obesity than children living in the least deprived areas (Manuel, 2022).
Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG-3) seeks to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. Although the National Health Service has a pivotal role in yielding better outcomes in the targets under SDG-3 the wider societal inequalities affect population health outcomes. Further, COVID-19 had critical effects and for some specific cases, it reversed the SDG-3 targets (Manuel, 2022). Most significant is the increase in the impact of ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities on disease-related targets. This section of the report includes an exploration of the NCDs issues within B&NES using the 5W&H theoretical framework.
Application of the 5W&H to Explore the Core Issues
What Needs to Be Done
It is necessary to implement contextualised solutions for the prevention and treatment of NCDs that account for the significance of ethnicity, socioeconomic conditions, and the associated behaviours. The primary action needed is to address the cost of living crisis to improve financial well-being, prevent ill health and improve accessibility of healthcare services. The first agenda is to ensure all persons in the region have access to quality healthcare services including prevention and treatment. Another core action is to support personal development for the working population to facilitate temporary or permanent employment. Another action is to leverage physical activity including exercise for children and elderly adults. The main concern is to tackle inequality across age, ethnicity, and socioeconomic conditions in terms of health outcomes.
Where Should It Be Done?
In B&NES within the most deprived areas. Both rural and urban areas are key targets of strategic interventions. The most significant deprived areas based on the 2021 census include Oldfield Park East, Midsomer Norton Redfield, Radstock, Southdown, and Twerton (Williams, 2022). This classification was based on the members of the household who are long-term sick or unemployed, have low GCSE passes, have long-term health problems and have unhabitable accommodations including overcrowding, or shared dwellings. Implementation of contextualised prevention and treatment of NCDs within these locations will reduce the risks of morbidity and mortality to the vulnerable population.
When Does it Need to be Done?
There is a need for a 15-year strategic plan to ensure all persons have access to high-quality healthcare services. An urgent plan to avert the COVID-19 and cost of living crisis effects which reversed the SDG-3 disease-related targets is a significant milestone in fulfilment of the strategic goals. A 2026-2030 health and wellbeing strategy prioritises tackling the inequality in the heart and respiratory conditions.
Who Should Do it
The national and local government NHS agencies have a responsibility to improve B&NES performance on SDG-3 targets. The B&NES council has the role of implementing the 5-year plan focused on the health and well-being of individuals living in the poor neighbourhood. Primarily the NHS have a responsibility have a responsibility to increase health coverage for vulnerable populations. For the success of the plan, the partners must share responsibility and engage in change in each phase (Bath & NorthEast Somerset Council, 2024). The oversight responsibility for the plan is to a “ Health and Wellbeing Board” with representation from all the partners. Other partners include the Children and Young People subcommittee of the board with adequate training on how to promote emotional and health well-being for the population from ethnic minorities, asylum seekers and those with socioeconomic challenges. Representatives include from health, education, employment, and public health. Another partner includes the senior people subcommittee of the board equipped to promote health and well-being for individuals 65 years and over. The key representations include geriatric healthcare providers, caregivers, community leaders, and relevant religious groups.
How Should It Be Done
First B&NES Council will provide evidence-based information on the effect of socioeconomic conditions on NCDs 5 years after the pandemic. Independent stakeholders will use the data to improve prevention and treatment plans for low-income households. Second, there is a need for local solutions and coordinated efforts for the prevention of ill health with respect to the 2026-2030 strategic goals. One key solution is to increase targeted funding to improve access to quality healthcare services. Finally, the prevention and treatment of NCDs to alter inequality will be enhanced through the creation and coordination of public health campaigns, health and emergency plans and the delivery of services. Prevention programs such as reducing smoking among men, obesity in children and adults, and alcohol use are key interventions.
Why Does it Need to Be Done?
The SDG-3 has synergy with other SDG targets such as poverty (SDG1) and inequalities (SDG-10 and SDG-5). A reduction in poverty helps to improve health and wellbeing and good health enables poverty reduction. Similarly, an improvement in gender equality is an effective factor to enhance the achievement of better health (Chapman, et al., 2017). Finally, a reduction in income, wealth and education inequalities contributes to better health and wellbeing outcomes. Poverty in B&NES has also been linked to psychological pressures, with stress contributing to heart and blood vessel challenges (Grimond, 2023). There is thus a need to implement solutions which target the effect of the socioeconomic inequality in B&NES performance in the SDG-3.
At the national level, B&NES does not compare favourably against other regions on equality toward SDG-3. Some people have suffered a cost of living crisis which hinders success in fulfilling the SDG-3 targets. There is a need to reduce hospitalisations and mortality rates for high-poverty households. SDG-3 target to reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases can be achieved through coordinated efforts to promote mental health and specific efforts for the prevention and treatment of medical conditions. Non-communicable diseases are influenced by environmental, behavioural and metabolic risk factors and are among the leading causes of mortality and morbidity. Another major SDG-3 target is the prevention and treatment of substance abuse including the harmful use of alcohol (Manuel, 2022). Smoking is among the major causes of low respiratory infections. Another key reason for increasing the accessibility of healthcare services to people living in poor households is that poor housing, pollution and exposure to other hazards increase the risks of respiratory infections.
In addition to the cost of living crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic which have exacerbated the effect of socioeconomic inequalities in progress across the SDG-3, there is great uncertainty in the economic and public health. The pandemic disrupted the detection and the management of conditions such as hypertension and the effect varied geographically. This had a direct effect on the subsequent mortality and morbidity and in the 2021/22 period, the NorthEast region reported the highest prevalence (Castanon, et al., 2023). Contextualised solutions in the prevention and treatment of NCDs in B&NES are a key milestone.
Section B: Future State Ideation
In order to address the healthcare challenge important solution is needed. The British Design Council developed the double diamond framework to inform the interplay of convergence and divergent thinking as the design projects evolve in different phases namely discover, define, develop and deliver as shown in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1: Double Diamond Model (Shen, et al., 2024)
Its application is not linear but an iterative process with continuous feedback and improvement (Johnson, et al., 2024). While section A above involves discovering the challenges and definition of the opportunity for change, this section involves developing the solution to fulfil SDG-3. This section prioritises the ideation phase with a focus on the means and ways to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates.
A collaboration between various stakeholders including the B&NES council, NHS and other public health groups is necessary to promote the desired change. The primary ambition is to achieve equality in access to preventive and treatment care for NCDs within the community. Since the stakeholders have different levels of experiences sharing the diversity is important to address the unique socioeconomic conditions which define the deprived state. Figure 2 shows a sequence of changes to achieve short-term and long-term goals.
Figure 2: Illustration of the Desired State
This current state is based on the most deprived areas within the community which is significantly different from the neighboring least deprived areas. While the primary goal of the project is not to address all the socioeconomic conditions such as unemployment, long-term sickness, low education attainment, and unhabitable accommodations there is a need to improve the overall quality of life. In the short term improved accessibility to healthcare services through community-based programs will reduce the risks of morbidity and mortality. Implementation of contextualised prevention and treatment of NCDs within these locations will maintain lower risks of morbidity and mortality to the vulnerable population. Since there is synergy between various SDG goals the strategic initiatives must explore poverty as a long-term challenge to the health and well-being of all (Yip, et al., 2024). The most critical recommended solutions to achieve the desired state include addressing the cost of living crisis, prevention and treatment of substance abuse and reduced exposure to hazards.
Addressing the Cost of Living Crisis to Improve Accessibility to Healthcare Services
Socioeconomic factors including employment, income, education, family or social support affect the affordability of quality healthcare services within the deprived areas. Primarily an integrated care system is significant to ensure medical and mental healthcare services are available based on the unique needs. One of the key solutions is to increase funding to support the availability of healthcare services (Thorlby et al., 2021). Further integrated care systems are necessary to better treat respiratory and cardiovascular diseases according to the unique needs. To ensure high quality of life mental health care and physical care must be integrated into vulnerable groups including those with disability. In the short term, some key solutions include welfare benefits for vulnerable groups including children and elderly adults (Yip, et al., 2024). The basic assumption is that in B&NES access to care and utilisation of quality of care services is high for least deprived places. An important intervention in the future is to support the advancement of digital infrastructure and leverage quality digitally enabled care. This intervention can be effective in overcoming transportation challenges and overcome mortality threats.
The long-term solution is to establish fair employment and good work for all residents. Although short-term efforts to provide funds to help the vulnerable groups are good, access to employment opportunities can decrease the long-term threats. Provision of seasonal employment opportunities and skill development is necessary to provide living wages to meet basic needs. Target groups for skill development and employment opportunities in these most deprived areas include carers, young people marginalised ethnic minorities and women. Most critical teenage parents require both education and employment support. To improve income levels short-term and long-term policies to address employment-related SDG-3 targets such as low pay and employment discrimination.
Reducing Exposure to Hazards
Both children and adults in the most deprived places in B&NES have a higher exposure to the hazards which influence respiratory diseases. There is a need to improve the sustainability of various neighbourhoods to reduce exposure. This solution is a long-term process and is estimated to yield positive outcomes in over 10 years. It is necessary to reduce the need for vulnerable groups like children to travel in highly polluted places through public transport access. Further establishing opportunities for affordable housing will reduce overcrowding and exposure to the hazards. B&NES council.
Lifestyle Education and Promoting Healthy Behaviour
The level of education is a major characteristic within the deprived areas and heightens threats of poor lifestyle leading to higher risks of circulatory, respiratory mental and behavioural threats. Allocation of funds for NHS prevention programmes which target the local needs of the deprived areas is necessary for literacy and lifestyle changes (Thorlby et al., 2021). Sponsored education programs within different regions including religious gatherings are important to raise awareness and promote change in regard to diet/physical exercises, sexual health, smoking and alcohol use. Coordinated efforts with healthcare systems are useful for educating high-risk populations such as smoking pregnant women and school-aged youths (Yip, et al., 2024). Collaboration with local communities is useful to reach the target groups using multiple methods. For instance, parenting programmes can be delivered through religious gatherings. Structured interventions such as employment opportunities and access to housing services will reduce substance abuse.
Conclusion
Addressing the challenge of inequality in NCDs in B&NES is significant in fulfilling the SDG-3 targets. In the deprived areas conditions such as unemployment, low income, low education level, poor housing and exposure to hazards increase threats of heart and respiratory diseases. Long-term interventions to reduce inequality encompass increasing access to quality healthcare services, reducing exposure to hazards, and promoting healthy behaviours. The NHS increased funding to address the local challenges needed to account for the benefits of preventive and treatment programmes. The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis in reversing the fulfilment of the SDG-3 targets remains critical and thus coordinated efforts must extend beyond Vision 2030.
References
Bath & NorthEast Sommerset Council (2024) Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy, Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy | Bath and North East Somerset Council.
Castanon, A. et al. (2023) ‘The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiovascular disease prevention and corresponding geographical inequalities in England: Interrupted time series analysis’, BMC Public Health, 23(1).
Chapman, P.H. et al. (2017) SDG 3 ENSURE HEALTHY LIVES AND PROMOTE WELL BEING FOR ALL AT ALL AGES. rep., pp. 84–121.
GOV.UK (2024) Cardiovascular disease and diabetes profiles: Statistical commentary, GOV.UK.
Grimond, W. (2023) Thousands in poverty suffering from health problems in Bath and North East Somerset, The Midsomer Norton & Radstock Journal.
Johnson, G. et al. (2024) Co-designing a digital family-delivered intervention for delirium prevention and management in adult critically ill patients: An application of the Double Diamond Design Process [Preprint].
Manuel, C. (2022) How the UK is performing on the Sustainable Development Goals. Edited by A. Ranft. Rep. London, pp. 4–141.
NHS (2023) Doctors urge action as local stats show heart disease kills every four hours, NHS choices.
Shen, Y. et al. (2024) ‘Use of the “double diamond” design framework to nurture creativity in life sciences research’, Trends in Biochemical Sciences, 49(8), pp. 654–657.
Thorlby, R., Gardner, T., Everest, G., Allen, L., Shembavnekar, N., Fisher, R., Dunn, P., Turner-Berry, F., Fraser, C., Briggs, A. and Alderwick, H., (2021) The NHS long term plan and COVID-19. London: The Health Foundation.
Williams, K. (2022) Census 2021: Most deprived areas in Bath and North East Somerset revealed, The Midsomer Norton & Radstock Journal.
Yip, J.L. et al. (2024) ‘Anti-racist interventions to reduce ethnic disparities in healthcare in the UK: An Umbrella Review and findings from healthcare, education and Criminal Justice’, BMJ Open, 14(2).