Overview
ModernDoc is an early stage health tech startup that uses AI to help people better understand their symptoms and have more informed conversations with their doctors. Their goal is to reduce misdiagnoses through an intelligent chatbot that makes reliable medical guidance more accessible.
Problem
While ModernDoc delivers quick, personalized health advice, users hesitate to fully trust the AI-generated information without visibility into its sources or a way to verify its accuracy.
Solution
Introduce a source citation feature that gives users immediate insight into where the information is coming from, enhancing credibility and strengthening ModernDoc’s competitive edge.
Impact
Overall improved satisfaction and confidence in the app
4.3
57%
57% of users trust ModernDoc more than competitors
+40%
40% increase in the percent of users’s who trust ModernDoc more than competitors
Here's how I got there
DISCOVER
Visibility and trust in credible sources are critical in driving a competitive advantage for ModernDoc
To guide the design process, we began by interviewing six potential users who have dealt with misdiagnoses or complex health conditions.
The goal was to learn how to attract and retain new users by exploring how potential users currently research health concerns. Specifically, we asked:
What resources do you use to research health concerns?
How do you choose those sources?
How do you determine if the information is trustworthy?
How does ModernDoc compare?
Key Insights:
Trust is critical in driving a competitive advantage
Because users rely on ModernDoc for personal, high-stakes health decisions, without trust, they'll turn to other sources.
Users seek reassurance by comparing answers across multiple sources
Especially with AI-powered tools, users want to see where information comes from to evaluate credibility.
Users are more likely to trust answers backed by well-known or reputable organizations.
Surveyed users prioritize brand familiarity and recently published sources when gauging credibility
To understand what makes a sources feel trustworthy to potential users, I surveyed 23 participants about how they evaluate online medical content.
Respondents shared they're more likely to trust information when they can:
View clearly listed citations within the article
Cross-reference information across multiple sources
Recognize the reputation of the website or institution
Confirm the article was recently published
Survey Trust Scores reveal ModernDoc struggles to stand out from competitors
8.7%
Only 8.7% of respondents rated ModernDoc as at least somewhat more trustworthy than their usual sources.
"Compared to its competitors, I trust ModernDoc…"
Much
More
0%
Somewhat
More
8.7%
About the
Same
56.5%
Somewhat
Less
13.0%
Much
Less
4.3%
Without a clear credibility advantage, users are unlikely to break their existing habits and adopt a new tool.
DEFINE
Opportunity to build trust through creating transparency
Research pointed to a clear desire: users want visibility into source data so they can validate their trust in modern doc.
Goal: Increase perceived credibility (measured through Trust Score) to differentiate ModernDoc from generic search and AI tools by making the sources of information more transparent, recognizable, and easy to verify.
POV: "I'm struggling to find accurate, personalized health information I can trust."
To humanize our research insights and guide the design process, I developed a user persona.
How might we… help Alexis easily find and confidently trust the health information she needs without needing to consult multiple sources?
IDEATE
We knew we wanted to display source material through citations. Our challenge was to surface citations in a way that builds trust without disrupting the conversational experience users expect from an AI chatbot.
AI Competitors are establishing design patterns
AI competitors, such at ChatGPT (Plus) and Perplexity are teaching users to expect features, such as
Inline citations
Simple source buttons
Expandable bottom sheets
Article titles, institutions and/or URLs
These features also aligned with what users prioritized in our earlier survey.
However, these patterns aren't mainstream… yet
Only 56% of survey respondents use AI tools for health-related searches and even fewer pay for the versions that showcase these more advanced citation features. Still, these companies have likely conducted significant UX research, giving us an opportunity to build on their insights and adapt them to ModernDoc's needs.
The MoSCoW Method helped define the key features
Based on my user research and competitive analysis, I prioritized key features for an MVP using the MoSCoW method of prioritization.
Low-fidelity sketches let us explore different layouts quickly
Now it was time to start visualizing! I began by sketching low-fidelity ideas for how sources could appear at the bottom of the ModernDoc's messages.
After speaking with the founder, I learned that incorporating logos would be technically complex and potentially costly, so I intentionally avoided them in this round of exploration.
I explored two layout directions:
PROTOTYPE & TEST
Comparative Testing explored how design variations impacted user trust and confidence
To identify the most effective design, we selected our top three citation designs and set up a moderated user test to gather feedback.
We showed six participants four different versions of ModernDoc: one baseline version with no visible sources and three versions that displayed sources with different citation styles.
For each version, users were asked to:
Rate their trust in the information using a Trust Score
Choose the version they preferred most overall
Status Quo
Static List
Simple Button
Horizontal Scroll
Result 1: The critical factor was the ability to see and access sources
Despite users expressing UI preferences, these preferences didn't meaningfully impact their trust ratings.
NOTE:
Trust Scores were the same for the Simple Button and Horizontal Scroll options for all testers except one who preferred the Horizontal Scroll most and gave it a slightly higher trust score.
Result 2: Users liked and trusted both the Simple Button and Horizontal Scroll
Most users gravitated toward the Simple Button, with three selecting it as their favorite and two others including it among their top choices.
The Horizontal Scroll, while slightly less preferred overall, received a marginally higher average Trust Score, boosted by one participant who selected it as their top choice and rated it higher than the rest.
Would an updated design surface a clear winner?
The Simple Button was the favorite, but we wondered… would users prefer the Static List if it included clickable links? Instead of reintroducing a long list, I combined the clarity of the list with the simplicity of the Horizontal Scroll.
Surprise! ModernDoc sources are primarily journal articles, not familiar websites
In the first round of testing, I used Perplexity-style sources as placeholders. After speaking with the founder, I learned that ModernDoc surfaces content from Pinecone, a vector database that pulls credible but less recognizable sources, such as medical journals.
Issue:
Four of six users said source familiarity influenced trust. So while journal articles are highly credible, they aren't as immediately recognizable as names like Johns Hopkins Medicine or the PMC.
Iterations accounted for this new information
To adjust for this constraint, I changed how the sources were shown in the bottom sheet to emphasize titles over institutions and provide the institution when it is available.
I also added the Publication Date as four out of six user testers expressed the desire to see this for added credibility in the Simple Button design.
A second round of comparative testing evaluated the two top updated designs
Simple Button
Horizontal Scroll
Result 1: Adding citations once again led to higher trust compared to competitors
When asked how much they trusted ModernDoc compared to competitors, 57% (4 out of 7) said they trusted ModernDoc more, 43% (3) said about the same. No participants reported trusting it less, despite some concerns about trusting AI-generated responses in general.
4.3
Average Trust Score
(Score out of 5)
57%
Trust ModernDoc more than competitors
+40%
Increase in percent of users who trust ModernDoc more than competitors
Result 2: Shifting the focus to title and URL did not greatly impact trust
Once again, ModernDoc (with citations) received the highest average trust score compared to competitors participants used.
These trust scores closely mirrored those from the previous test, indicating that focusing on title and URL did not seem to greatly impact trust.
Result 3: Users trusted both designs equally but with trade offs
Both designs performed well for different reasons. However, there was a slight preference for the Simple Button.
FINAL DESIGN
Winner: The Simple Button!
After reviewing the results with the founder, we chose to move forward with the Simple Button.
While the data didn't reveal a definitive winner and showed that both designs performed similarly, each with its own tradeoffs, the Simple Button revealed a slight edge across multiple tests and came with the added benefit of being simpler to implement from an engineering standpoint.
REFLECTION
What’s next?
Boosting trust was just the first step. We saw encouraging signs in testing, but the real impact will become clear through user behavior.
Once citations are implemented, we will monitor changes in monthly active users (MAU). If the new design fosters real trust and adoption, we expect engagement to grow.
Looking ahead, we'd like to explore more ways to increase trust and highlight the credibility of less familiar sources. Future iterations could include features like a confidence score or visual indicators showing whether a source is peer-reviewed, award-winning, or pre-published.