A trauma-informed, mobile-first website redesign for a maternity care provider in Nelson, BC.

Role: UX/UI Design, Information Architecture, WordPress Development
Tools: Figma, WordPress (custom), ACF, Media File Organizer

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Note: some changes may have been made by the client since launch. See case study details below for original build details

Project Overview

Apple Tree Maternity is a trauma-informed maternity care practice providing prenatal, birth, and postpartum support through a collaborative care model of midwives, family physicians, nurses, lactation consultants, and allied health professionals. The clinic needed a modern, intuitive website that clearly communicated its care pathways, offered easy access to resources, and could be maintained internally by practitioners.

I was hired to redesign and rebuild the website using WordPress and the Astra theme with a child theme and custom PHP + ACF page templates, improve the information architecture, elevate the visual experience, and ensure the site aligned with the clinic’s supportive, patient-centered philosophy.

Client/Role/Timeline

Client
Apple Tree Maternity — a collaborative maternity care practice in Nelson, BC, offering trauma-informed prenatal, birth, and postpartum care through an integrated team of midwives, physicians, nurses, lactation consultants, and allied health providers.

Role
Lead UX/UI Designer & WordPress Developer
Information Architecture
Design System Development
Custom ACF Template + PHP Development
Content Structuring & Migration
Mobile-First Accessibility & Trauma-Informed UX

Timeline
12 weeks total

  • Weeks 1–2: Discovery, UX audit, content inventory, IA restructuring
  • Weeks 3–4: Wireframes, design system, visual identity refinements
  • Weeks 5–8: Custom WordPress build (Astra child theme + ACF templates)
  • Weeks 9–10: Content integration, media organization, resources + FAQs
  • Weeks 11–12: QA, accessibility review, training, and launch support

Sector/Platform/Deliverables

Sector
Healthcare — Maternity, Perinatal & Collaborative Care
Trauma-informed, patient-centered service organization with multidisciplinary providers (midwives, physicians, nurses, lactation consultants, and allied health).

Platform
WordPress (Astra child theme)
Custom ACF-driven templates (PHP)
Figma for UX/UI, wireframes, and design system
Media File Organizer for structured content management

Deliverables

  • Full UX audit of existing site content & IA
  • Revised sitemap + information architecture focused on care pathways
    Mobile-first wireframes for all core templates
  • High-fidelity Figma UI design system (color, typography, components)
    Custom WordPress build using Astra child theme
  • Modular ACF content layouts for easy updates
  • Page templates for Programs, Services, Team, FAQ, Resources, and Birth Pathway
  • Trauma-informed, accessible content presentation (WCAG AA considerations)
  • Content reorganization + migration (including medical resources & patient education)
  • Internal training guide for ongoing updates
  • Launch support & post-launch QA

Challenges

  • Fragmented navigation
  • Limited accessibility
  • Difficult resource updates
  • Overlapping services/programs
  • Inconsistent mobile experience

Goals

  • Clarify care model and pathways
  • Improve IA and usability
  • Support practitioners in managing resources
  • Build a warm, professional, trauma-informed visual experience
  • Improve performance and accessibility

Before / After Sitemap & IA

Before – Existing Information Architecture

Home

Our Care
    • Single page
    • Mixed content without clear anchors

Orchard Services
    • Services not clearly differentiated from care

Programs
    • Parents Support Group (buried as child)
    • Lactation Support (treated as a “program”)

Meet the Team

Resources

FAQ

Contact Us

The original IA used a mostly flat structure. Our Care, Orchard Services, and Programs overlapped conceptually, and key offerings like Lactation Support were classified as programs rather than ongoing services. Care sections existed on a single page without a clearly defined anchor structure, which limited both usability and SEO.

After – UX-Optimized Information Architecture

Home

Our Care
    • Maternity Collaboration (#maternity-collaboration)
    • Individual Care (#individual-care)
    • Group Prenatal Care (#group-prenatal-care)
    • Support After the Birth (#postpartum-support)

Orchard Services
    • Specialized maternity services

Programs
    • Parent Support Group
    • Lactation Support
    • Future workshops and groups

Meet the Team
    • Practitioner profiles

Resources
    • PDFs and educational materials

FAQ

Contact Us
    • Contact form, email, map, hours

In the updated IA, Our Care is consolidated into a single, anchored page for launch, with a clear plan to evolve each anchor into its own subpage when content is ready. Services and Programs are more clearly differentiated, and key offerings like Lactation Support are positioned to be more visible and future-proof.

"Our Care": Anchor-Based Structure

Due to limited available content at launch, the Our Care section was intentionally kept as a single page using anchor navigation. This reduced content burden for the client while providing a cohesive, readable overview of the clinic’s care model.

However, the IA was designed to be fully scalable. As content grows, each anchor can be converted into its own subpage with dedicated metadata, improving SEO and giving users a deeper understanding of each care pathway.

Anchor Structure (Final)

This structure allows users to quickly jump to the information they need while preparing the site for future expansion.

Maternity Collaboration

→ Introduction describing the collaborative team model

Anchor: #maternity-collaboration

Individual Care

→ Section beginning with “You may choose to receive prenatal and postpartum care in a one-on-one or group setting.”

Anchor: #individual-care

Group Prenatal Care

→ Dedicated section explaining group appointments and classes

Anchor: #group-prenatal-care

Support After the Birth

→ Postpartum care, home visits, lactation support

Anchor: #postpartum-support

UX Process (Discovery, IA, Wireframes, UI)

Discover

  • Content audit
  • User needs and pain points

Define

  • Before/after sitemap
  • Anchor strategy for Our Care

Design

  • Low-fidelity wireframes
  • High-fidelity UI in Figma

Deliver

WordPress
ACF, custom php page development, Media File Organizer

Content Management & Media File Organizer

Content Management Improvements

Pain: unorganized PDF resources.
Solution: folder-based media organization.
Outcome: practitioners can upload and categorize resources independently.

Visual Design / Screens Gallery

Our Care page hero

Programs listing

Resources page

Mobile views

Results & Impact

1

Outcome 1

Clearer navigation between care, services, and programs
2

Outcome 2

Faster practitioner workflow for resource uploads
3

Outcome 3

Improved mobile readability and accessibility
4

Outcome 4

Future-ready IA for adding new services and programs

Let's work together

Interested in a UX-focused redesign that supports both users and your internal team?

Get in touch