At On the Mend, we are honest about our successes and our failures. We know that we can never fix every single problem with a single interaction. Below are some of our key reflections, and things we would change if we could repeat this work:
A more absorbable paper
The diffuser paper was waxy, meaning that it didn’t absorb the scents properly! Next time, we will invest in filter paper so that the scents last longer.
Bring some plastic sheets!
There are a lot of restrictions on what materials are allowed in hospitals in order to manage infection control. However, we would like to bring wipe down sheets and screens next time to add a bit of colour to our stall.
Branding which had bolder and more visible text
The tester strips were small, and we packed in too much information about the project. We also used a light text on a black background, which was harder to read. We would change this next time.
Location
Our stall was placed in the outpatients’ area, which is where the weekly pop-up bookshop used to be. This meant that some long-term patients and regular visitors thought that the perfumes were for sale. Next time, we would have more mobile workshops in each of the wards to avoid this.
Impact measuring
It would have been beneficial to leave the patients with an anonymous feedback form so they could tell us whether this project was something they would like to see again and what could be improved.
