UX and UI Design for the HAMILTON‑EM7: Confident Ventilation in Emergency Care

Approach: Making Emergency Response the Starting Point for the Design

Milani and Hamilton Medical developed the user interface through several iterative stages, from user research to an implementation-ready design. The process began with qualitative interviews with different user groups in the United States, France, Spain, and Germany. The team sought to understand how emergency medical services professionals think and make decisions in the field, and where uncertainty arises under time pressure. The interviews revealed that there is no single, widely established approach to emergency ventilation. Best practices vary among hospitals, emergency medical services organizations, and healthcare systems. The user population is equally diverse, ranging from experienced emergency physicians to healthcare professionals who rarely work with mechanical ventilation. The interface therefore could not rely on a fixed workflow or a uniform level of experience. It needed to guide less experienced users while giving experienced professionals direct access to the functions they need.

Milani and the Hamilton Medical team translated these insights into initial wireframe prototypes and tested the most important workflows with users. This allowed Hamilton Medical to evaluate core interaction concepts early and make necessary adjustments before technical development began. The visual design focused on the compact display. Monitoring and waveform data, settings, and guidance were clearly prioritized and arranged so they could be interpreted quickly under time pressure. Colors and contrast were selected with changing lighting conditions in mind. Milani implemented the operating concept in an extensive interactive prototype, which was tested by emergency medical services professionals in Europe and the United States. The findings informed the final UX and UI design. Milani then supported Hamilton Medical’s development team during technical implementation. A style guide and a complete set of visual assets helped ensure that the design and interaction principles were translated consistently into the final product.

Result: An Intuitive Interface Focused on What Matters Most

With the HAMILTON‑EM7, Hamilton Medical expanded its portfolio with a compact, durable emergency ventilator for prehospital care. The device is designed for mobile use and the challenging conditions encountered outside the hospital.

The streamlined interface displays only the relevant monitoring and waveform data. A clear information hierarchy makes it easier to interpret key values under time pressure. Workflow-based guidance supports essential steps from device startup and preoperational checks to rapid sequence intubation and CPR ventilation. The color touch screen, press-and-turn knob, and hard keys work together to enable intuitive operation. The interface guides less experienced users without constraining specialists with rigid workflows. In user testing with emergency medical services professionals from Europe and the United States, even participants with limited ventilation experience understood the most important steps immediately.

With the HAMILTON‑EM7, Hamilton Medical translated its extensive expertise in mechanical ventilation into the requirements of mobile emergency response. Involving international user groups early in the process ensured that the interface was grounded in real-world operating conditions and diverse user needs.