Applying systems approaches to explore needs, risks, and unintended consequences https://rsdsymposium.org/immunity-passports-as-complex-systems/

1. COVID-19 immunity
certificates as
complex systems:
applying systems approaches to explore
needs, risks, and unintended consequences
RSD10 - 6TH November 2021.
@immune_project

2. Agenda
What is the IMMUNE project?
Research questions
Methodology
Some outputs of research
Conclusion and future questions
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
@immune_project
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

3. IMMUNE (or Immunity Passport Service Design)
is a research project run by
Loughborough University and Brunel University London
Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) under
the UKRI COVID-19 Rapid Response Call.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

4. • Panos Balatsoukas (Loughborough University)
• Isabel Sassoon (Brunel University London)
• Thomas Jun (Loughborough University)
• Cecilia Landa-Avila (Loughborough University)
• Ozlem Colak (Loughborough University)
• Corina Niculaescu (Brunel University London)
• Tina Harvey (Loughborough University)
The IMMUNE project Team is a multidisciplinary team of academics and
researchers combining knowledge and expertise in Digital Health, Design,
Human Factors, Computer Science and Social Sciences.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

5. What we investigate?
Overview of project
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

6. Strategy to safely exit lockdowns
and go back to normality.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
COVID-19 immunity certificates in the UK
A way to proof your COVID-19
immunity status.
• By previous infection
• After being fully vaccinated
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

7. Concerns that were not being heard.
Pressure on service providers without
guidance and support.
Uncertainty about risk of
consequences of these certificates.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Why the IMMUNE project?
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

8. DISCLAIMER
The IMMUNE project did not seek to examine whether
immunity certificates are good or bad.
Also, the IMMUNE project did not seek to encourage or
discourage the use of immunity certificates.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

9. March
2021
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
November
2021
Pandemic
declared
Rollout of
vaccines
initiated (UK)
First vaccine
certificates
(Worldwide)
First tentative
mandatory use of
certificates (UK)
September
2021
Dec June
Pilot events
used immunity
certificates (UK)
System to
obtain proof of
immunity (UK)
May
Feb
“Plans
ditched”
2020
Immunity by
infection
certificate
(Chile)
April
March
COVID-19 Immunity certificates roadmap
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

10. Specifically, the IMMUNE project
addressed two questions:
1
2
What are the key concerns about the possible risks and
unintended consequences of using immunity passports?
How to design immunity certificates in a way that
mitigate any unintended consequences or risks?
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Key questions
RSD10 I What is the IMMUNE project?

11. Methodology.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I Methodology

12. Cultural and
Creative
Industries
Sports
sector
Local
businesses
Tourism
and travel
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Who was involved?
We wanted to engage with
service providers,
the public,
vulnerable groups,
experts,
academic researchers.
RSD10 I Methodology

13. 1
2
Facilitate participatory research with
heterogeneous groups
Integrate changing data and regulations to the project
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Key challenges throughout the research
Trade-offs between communicating complexity and
oversimplifying findings.
3
4 Conducted only online research
RSD10 I Methodology

14. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Overviews of the methodology
Synthesis
map
Storytelling
to explore
tensions
Communicate
“one size
doesn't fit all”
Tensions
RSD10 I Methodology

15. Synthesis map
Mobilising knowledge
Create a common ground
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I Methodology

16. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Online environment
(Initial focus group)
RSD10 I Methodology

17. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Consequences
(Internal board)
RSD10 I Methodology

18. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Tensions
(Internal board)
Data
privacy
Convenience
RSD10 I Methodology

19. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Storytelling
Contextualise the tensions
Focus the participatory workshops on key moments
Convenience
Sports Theatres Nightclubs
Data
privacy
RSD10 I Methodology

20. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Storytelling
Contextualise the tensions
Focus the participatory workshops on key moments
Data
privacy
Convenience
RSD10 I Methodology

21. Some outputs
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I Outputs

22. The outputs of this project will be shared with:
The government's Scientific Advisory Board for Emergencies (SAGE).
Public Health England (PHE)
The NHS X
Local councils across the UK and the public.
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Trade-offs between communicating complexity and
oversimplifying findings.
!
RSD10 I Outputs

23. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Integrated journey map
One size does not fits all:
!
RSD10 I Outputs

24. Conclusions and
what is next
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
@immune_project
RSD10 I Conclusions and future questions

25. Conclusions
Storytelling engage and facilitate discusions with
these heterogeneous groups
(Even more than initial synthesis maps)
A
Journey maps have the potential to
communicate complexity
People face tensions and dilemmas differently when interact with services.
If the most “evident” idea is not well understood,
choose it as your main message.
Tone down the level of complexity to be communicated.
B
C
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
RSD10 I Conclusions and future questions

26. Future questions
How improved the integrated journey maps?
A
How to “design for crises” applying a
systems-oriented approach?
B
@immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
Tension reactive vs. slow-paced
RSD10 I Conclusions and future questions

27. @immune_project
IMMUNE
Immunity Passport
Service Design
immunity.passports@lboro.ac.uk
This
presentation
was
designing
using
resources
from
Slidesgo,
including
icons
of
Flaticon.
Images
from
Pexels.
@iclanda
i.c.landa-avila@lboro.ac.uk
immunitypassportsdesign.org/
Cecilia Landa-Avila
Dr Panos Balatsoukas (PI)