Safe commutes for frontline workers, reducing understaffing at care homes amid the pandemic.

THE PROBLEM

One of the most heartbreaking aspects of the COVID-19 crisis was the high number of elderly deaths in care homes, worsened by a nationwide shortage of staff and lack of personalized care.

After Dr. Theresa Tam revealed that nearly half of Canada’s COVID-19 deaths were in care homes, we were compelled to take action. As part of the Swiftride Taskforce, we spoke with care home managers and found that commute safety and limited public transportation were key barriers to staffing, despite frontline workers’ willingness to help

"There is lack of a safe and reliable mode of transportation."

"Limited availability of cab services from major providers."

"I can't reassure others that my commute is infection-free."

"Public transit schedules are inconvenient due to reduced frequency."

"I'm concerned about unknowingly carrying illness from my commute into the care home."



THE BIG IDEA

-->

SOLUTION & IMPACT

To address commute challenges, we created Heropool—a carpooling platform for frontline workers that complies with national ride restrictions. It offers flexible, affordable, and sanitized ride-pairing by matching those needing a ride with fellow frontline workers or volunteers on similar routes.

The Heropool Benefit:

  • Zero cost service for daily commute of frontline workers
  • Flexibility in commute with minimal waiting time
  • Guaranteed Sanitation helping solve the concern for easy virus spread
  • Reliable Commute Network with your own work colleagues





KEY DESIGN MILESTONES

We match your ride with others on similar shift schedules for a more convenient commute.

How the service works
  • Riders(those seeking a ride) enter their work shift schedule for the day in the app.
  • Drivers(those volunteering to drive) set their availability time range for the day.
  • An automated ride-pairing algorithm runs every 6 hours, matching users by location proximity and similar shift timings.

Designed with ease-of-use in mind, no tech expertise needed.

What problem we solved & why

We designed the application to be simple, considering users' urgency, limited time, and varying comfort with technology—especially given their primary focus on healthcare.

How we solved it

  • Simple and quick registration is our top priority—with just a phone number, you can log in and manage your rides.
  • An intuitive design allows users to easily enter shift timings, set availability, and manage rides—accepting and confirming with just a few taps.
  • Message notifications are sent to quickly initiate conversations and keep users informed about their ride status.




RESULTS

We’ve just launched our service with one elderly care facility and are eager to hear how it’s supporting their staff. Along the way, we’ve gained some valuable insights:

  • Great ideas can take shape quickly—our 2-week hackathon sprint showed how powerful collaboration across diverse skill sets can be.
  • Simplicity is key. For emergency-use applications, especially those used by non-tech-savvy users, a clean and intuitive interface is essential.
  • While mentor guidance is valuable for shaping product direction, real impact is best understood through usability testing and direct user feedback.