Simplified Procedure Estimate — Modern Animal
Simplified Procedure Estimate — Modern Animal
Simplification
I led the design of the Simplified Procedure Estimate flow, helping internal staff clearly communicate procedure details and costs to pet parent members. The redesigned experience improved understanding and trust, leading to a 3.4 percentage point increase in same-day COHAT (dental cleaning) bookings and unlocking ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
I led the design of the Simplified Procedure Estimate flow, helping internal staff clearly communicate procedure details and costs to pet parent members. The redesigned experience improved understanding and trust, leading to a 3.4 percentage point increase in same-day COHAT (dental cleaning) bookings and unlocking ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
Role
Lead Product Designer
Company
Modern Animal
Date
March 2025
The Problem
When a pet is recommended for a procedure requiring anesthesia—such as a surgery or dental cleaning—members expect a clear understanding of what will happen and how much it will cost. Yet, our previous estimate experience created more confusion than clarity.
This is an example of what our previous estimate experience looked like. During a visit, nurses would sit down with the client and show them this estimate from their laptop screen.
Doctors were recommending procedures, but only ~30% of members went through with booking. In-clinic research revealed that members felt unsure about the purpose of the procedure, the meaning of line items, and whether they were making a good decision. Without clarity, many simply chose not to move forward with care.
Scope & constraints
Simplifying the estimate experience required navigating both technical and organizational constraints:
Internally, the system did not categorize line items in a way that mapped to a clear medical or billing structure for members.
Clinicians had varying opinions on how estimates should be categorized and presented.
The design needed to be flexible enough to accommodate multiple procedure types, clinic workflows, and future scaling
Results
The redesigned estimate flow launched as part of a comprehensive procedure booking redesign for 128,000+ members. Pilot clinics saw a 3.4 percentage point lift in same-day COHAT bookings (21.2% vs 17.8%), resulting in 58 additional procedures and ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
Clinic staff shared that the new experience made it easier to explain estimates and helped members feel more informed and confident in their decisions.
Solution
Research & Brainstorming
I conducted in-clinic research with doctors and members to understand pain points in the existing experience. We asked members about their process for reviewing estimates, reasons for booking or not booking, and what information would help them feel more informed.
Since this was my first project in the vetmed world, there was a lot I needed to understand. I asked doctors to help explain the different parts of the estimate, what they do during a procedure, why the estimate is the way it is today, etc. This was done in-clinic when I could and I recorded notes in Notion.
After creating prototypes, I returned to clinics to test the new experience with members. We captured qualitative feedback on clarity, perceived value, and whether members would feel more likely to book a procedure after seeing the simplified estimate.
Design Approach
Key design decisions included:
Breaking line items into distinct, member-friendly categories (e.g. Anesthesia, Extractions, Preventative Care)
Expandable dropdowns for members who wanted more detail, while keeping the default view simple and digestible
Upfront and clear pricing, with costs visible at both the category and line item level — allowing members to easily understand value and compare across clinics
Before landing on this approach, I wireframed several concepts to explore different ways of presenting the estimate. Some ideas were as simple as rewriting existing language to be more customer-friendly, while others were more ambitious — like an interactive chart to show how costs were distributed or separating items into clearly labeled “buckets.”
I presented these explorations to our working group, which included the PM, lead engineer, and a representative from the medical team. We discussed the pros and cons of each direction, weighing feasibility, clarity, and clinical accuracy. Ultimately, we aligned on the “bucketed” estimate structure as the best balance of transparency and simplicity.
Throughout the project, I partnered closely with engineering — bringing them in early to assess feasibility, brainstorm implementation approaches, and align on tradeoffs. As we moved into development, I collaborated closely during handoff and build, providing visual QA and suggesting refinements to ensure the final product met the design intent.
To enable the “bucketed” structure, I also worked with veterinary subject matter experts to define categories that would resonate with both members and clinicians. This required enriching internal data and introducing new category metadata.
I led alignment discussions across clinics to resolve differences in how doctors wanted estimates structured, landing on a shared standard that balanced clinical accuracy with member comprehension.
Exploration wireframes showing alternative approaches to cost breakdown
Final solution with categories collapsed
Final solution with all categories expanded
Prototyping & Testing
We piloted the redesigned estimate flow in three clinics. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive — clinic staff found it easier to walk members through the estimate, and members expressed greater understanding of the procedures and associated costs.
One piece of feedback we captured was that combining certain estimates (e.g. COHAT and mass removals) did not accurately reflect anesthesia time or pricing. We documented this for future iterations to ensure even greater accuracy.
The Live Experience
The Simplified Procedure Estimate experience launched as part of the broader procedure booking redesign and is now live across our clinics. Early results show improved booking rates and more positive member conversations around care planning.
We continue to monitor feedback and are prioritizing additional enhancements — including more nuanced logic for multi-procedure estimates — in future roadmap cycles.
Reflections
This project was my first foray into veterinary medicine, and I had to rapidly learn clinical workflows, acronyms, member mindsets, and internal systems.
Understanding how information was structured in our systems — and what we needed to change to support a better experience — was a critical part of the process.
Ultimately, this reinforced the importance of cross-functional collaboration when simplifying complex experiences. By grounding our design decisions in both member needs and clinical realities, we were able to deliver an experience that supported better care for both pets and their humans.
Simplified Procedure Estimate — Modern Animal
Simplification
I led the design of the Simplified Procedure Estimate flow, helping internal staff clearly communicate procedure details and costs to pet parent members. The redesigned experience improved understanding and trust, leading to a 3.4 percentage point increase in same-day COHAT (dental cleaning) bookings and unlocking ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
Role
Lead Product Designer
Company
Modern Animal
Date
March 2025
The Problem
When a pet is recommended for a procedure requiring anesthesia—such as a surgery or dental cleaning—members expect a clear understanding of what will happen and how much it will cost. Yet, our previous estimate experience created more confusion than clarity.
This is an example of what our previous estimate experience looked like. During a visit, nurses would sit down with the client and show them this estimate from their laptop screen.
Doctors were recommending procedures, but only ~30% of members went through with booking. In-clinic research revealed that members felt unsure about the purpose of the procedure, the meaning of line items, and whether they were making a good decision. Without clarity, many simply chose not to move forward with care.
Scope & constraints
Simplifying the estimate experience required navigating both technical and organizational constraints:
Internally, the system did not categorize line items in a way that mapped to a clear medical or billing structure for members.
Clinicians had varying opinions on how estimates should be categorized and presented.
The design needed to be flexible enough to accommodate multiple procedure types, clinic workflows, and future scaling
Results
The redesigned estimate flow launched as part of a comprehensive procedure booking redesign for 128,000+ members. Pilot clinics saw a 3.4 percentage point lift in same-day COHAT bookings (21.2% vs 17.8%), resulting in 58 additional procedures and ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
Clinic staff shared that the new experience made it easier to explain estimates and helped members feel more informed and confident in their decisions.
Solution
Research & Brainstorming
I conducted in-clinic research with doctors and members to understand pain points in the existing experience. We asked members about their process for reviewing estimates, reasons for booking or not booking, and what information would help them feel more informed.
Since this was my first project in the vetmed world, there was a lot I needed to understand. I asked doctors to help explain the different parts of the estimate, what they do during a procedure, why the estimate is the way it is today, etc. This was done in-clinic when I could and I recorded notes in Notion.
After creating prototypes, I returned to clinics to test the new experience with members. We captured qualitative feedback on clarity, perceived value, and whether members would feel more likely to book a procedure after seeing the simplified estimate.
Design Approach
Key design decisions included:
Breaking line items into distinct, member-friendly categories (e.g. Anesthesia, Extractions, Preventative Care)
Expandable dropdowns for members who wanted more detail, while keeping the default view simple and digestible
Upfront and clear pricing, with costs visible at both the category and line item level — allowing members to easily understand value and compare across clinics
Before landing on this approach, I wireframed several concepts to explore different ways of presenting the estimate. Some ideas were as simple as rewriting existing language to be more customer-friendly, while others were more ambitious — like an interactive chart to show how costs were distributed or separating items into clearly labeled “buckets.”
I presented these explorations to our working group, which included the PM, lead engineer, and a representative from the medical team. We discussed the pros and cons of each direction, weighing feasibility, clarity, and clinical accuracy. Ultimately, we aligned on the “bucketed” estimate structure as the best balance of transparency and simplicity.
Throughout the project, I partnered closely with engineering — bringing them in early to assess feasibility, brainstorm implementation approaches, and align on tradeoffs. As we moved into development, I collaborated closely during handoff and build, providing visual QA and suggesting refinements to ensure the final product met the design intent.
To enable the “bucketed” structure, I also worked with veterinary subject matter experts to define categories that would resonate with both members and clinicians. This required enriching internal data and introducing new category metadata.
I led alignment discussions across clinics to resolve differences in how doctors wanted estimates structured, landing on a shared standard that balanced clinical accuracy with member comprehension.
Exploration wireframes showing alternative approaches to cost breakdown
Final solution with categories collapsed
Final solution with all categories expanded
Prototyping & Testing
We piloted the redesigned estimate flow in three clinics. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive — clinic staff found it easier to walk members through the estimate, and members expressed greater understanding of the procedures and associated costs.
One piece of feedback we captured was that combining certain estimates (e.g. COHAT and mass removals) did not accurately reflect anesthesia time or pricing. We documented this for future iterations to ensure even greater accuracy.
The Live Experience
The Simplified Procedure Estimate experience launched as part of the broader procedure booking redesign and is now live across our clinics. Early results show improved booking rates and more positive member conversations around care planning.
We continue to monitor feedback and are prioritizing additional enhancements — including more nuanced logic for multi-procedure estimates — in future roadmap cycles.
Reflections
This project was my first foray into veterinary medicine, and I had to rapidly learn clinical workflows, acronyms, member mindsets, and internal systems.
Understanding how information was structured in our systems — and what we needed to change to support a better experience — was a critical part of the process.
Ultimately, this reinforced the importance of cross-functional collaboration when simplifying complex experiences. By grounding our design decisions in both member needs and clinical realities, we were able to deliver an experience that supported better care for both pets and their humans.
Simplified Procedure Estimate — Modern Animal
Simplified Procedure Estimate — Modern Animal
Simplification
Simplification
I led the design of the Simplified Procedure Estimate flow, helping internal staff clearly communicate procedure details and costs to pet parent members. The redesigned experience improved understanding and trust, leading to a 3.4 percentage point increase in same-day COHAT (dental cleaning) bookings and unlocking ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
I led the design of the Simplified Procedure Estimate flow, helping internal staff clearly communicate procedure details and costs to pet parent members. The redesigned experience improved understanding and trust, leading to a 3.4 percentage point increase in same-day COHAT (dental cleaning) bookings and unlocking ~$290,000 in additional monthly revenue potential.
Role
Lead Product Designer
Company
Modern Animal
Date
March 2025