Organizing a Website of Resources for NHV Health

The New Haven Health Department (NHV Health)’s mission is to ensure the health and well-being of New Haven residents. Its primary objective is to prevent the spread of diseases, protect against environmental hazards, and promote healthy behaviors among the population.

When I first met NHV Health, their website lacked organization. It was easy to picture how a resident navigating the site would easily give up on finding what they were looking for. This was an issue, considering the department website should be a reliable resource for all New Haven residents.

Deciding on Structure

This website project was a big undertaking. With a tight deadline, the priority was function over beauty.

Due to the structure of the department, it was important for the information to be organized by division (Environmental Health, Epidemiology, Health Programs, Public Health Emergency Preparedness, Nursing Services, Vital Statistics). This was how the previous site was organized. The downside to this method was that the average New Haven resident didn’t know enough about each division to know how to find what they were looking for. So we would have to find another way for residents to navigate the website.

We discussed organizing content by programs & services, but we would still need a home for additional information and resources. Another idea was to have people self-identify to find information. After lots of back and forth, we decided to give users several ways to find what they need. This meant creating a menu with three main navigation options: search by a self-identifier, search by program, and search by keyword (a search bar). We also included an A-Z website map or index that could be found in the footer and landing pages for each of the divisions.

Organizing Content

When it came to organizing the content, my goal was to create as few pages as possible. I started by grouping all information by topic, noting how each page would internally link out to the next. Then I designed a menu that gave residents several ways to find the same information. One complex color-coded spreadsheet later, I was able to show how a 100+ item menu would all link out to the same 38 pages.