KATELYN DIXON

Katelyn Dixon is a designer from Tupelo, Mississippi. She has spent the past two years working as a designer for a local mountain-bike trail company in Bentonville. While being surrounded by avid cyclists, she has become one as well. When she isn’t on a bike, she is probably cooking a meal for friends, traveling, or playing with her new puppy, Nash. Katelyn specializes in identity design, branding and layout design, but is most passionate about human-centered design. Her degree project focuses on providing social nourishment to primary caregivers to relinquish the stress and anxiety that stems from their caretaking responsibilities.

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“FRANKLY, CAREGIVERS DESERVE SOCIAL NOURISHMENT.” 

Aging is inevitable. If we are lucky, we get to live a long life full of fun, love, and happiness; however, what about at the end? Immobility and memory loss are likely in our future. Currently 5.7 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, and that number grows every year. This disease deteriorates memory and makes the individual incapable of caring for his or herself. Because of this, caregivers are necessary, and many family members decide to take on this responsibility. They drop everything to care for the ones they love, and in return they face many hardships, including emotional and physical tolls, mental health issues, and financial instability. If caregivers are a necessity, then why hasn’t anyone done anything to alleviate any of these issues?

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 16 million Americans provide unpaid care for people with Alzheimer’s or other dementias. So far in 2020, these caregivers have provided an estimated 18.6 billion hours of care valued at nearly $244 billion. Many primary caregivers remain in the workforce while simultaneously juggling the role of caregiving. This results in increased stress, anxiety, and depression. A study conducted by Mausback found that 40% of caregivers are significantly more likely to report depressive symptoms than non-caregivers. 

With this information in mind, Katelyn set out to create a solution that would empower caregivers and relieve stress and anxiety. After conducting primary and secondary research, she narrowed her target audience to women ages 55-75 caring for a close relative. She was also able to narrow down to one main issue she wanted to tackle: lack of support. Many caregivers feel isolated from family, friends, and the outside world. The feeling of isolation and lack of support is the catalyst to many of the other issues.

After many rounds of iteration, Katelyn created Nourish, an app created to foster social nourishment among caregivers. Nourish accomplishes three things: educates the user, builds community, and connects the user with other caregivers in the area. By incorporating these three tools, the user will feel more connected with other caregivers and have access to a community where he or she can voice any questions or concerns.

Because caregivers are essential in our community, it is our job to encourage and uplift them. Nourish has the capability of solving many of the issues surrounding caregiving by educating the user on the disease and responsibilities and building a community that fosters open conversations. This app in no way solves all of the issues surrounding caregiving; however, it paves the way for more changes in the future.