Starting point: A rigid booking process and fragmented customer experience

Ovumia is a clinic chain specialized in infertility and fertility treatments, helping people achieve their dream of having a child and a family. Today, every sixth couple experiences fertility challenges, so Ovumia wants access to treatment to be as accessible as possible. The company invests heavily in the medical development of the field while always keeping humanity as the most important guiding principle of its operations.

Since fertility treatments can be emotionally demanding, every touchpoint matters. The goal is to enable customers to access treatment as early, easily, and quickly as possible. Customers often expect a rapid response and a smooth start to their treatment journey.

Ovumia’s previous appointment booking process was rigid due to an outdated user interface. The experience varied across clinics because of different systems, which could slow down the start of the treatment journey. Booking and patient information systems were not integrated, sometimes leading to double bookings and negatively impacting customer experience.

The situation also burdened staff: a significant amount of time was spent on manual booking and documentation tasks, instead of focusing on patient care and genuine customer interaction.

Self-service was not truly the primary channel, as a large share of bookings was still handled by phone. Booking was not always fully in the customer’s control, and the first contact often required multiple interactions.

Growing demand for treatment, long public healthcare queues, and increasing customer expectations for digital services made it clear that change was needed. Therefore, Ovumia decided to renew its booking system together with HiQ.

Solution: A Unified, Modern, and Integrated Online Booking System

The goal was to improve access to fertility treatments and speed up entry into care through a modern online booking system. From a business perspective, the aim was also to increase the share of online bookings in order to reduce time spent on manually logging phone bookings.

In addition to simplifying the booking of initial fertility consultations, the objective was to unify the customer experience and create a technically modern and scalable platform for future digital initiatives.

HiQ delivered a completely new, unified, and modern online booking service to replace the previous fragmented solution. HiQ was responsible for architecture design, technical implementation, UX and UI design, as well as software development and testing.

When designing the user experience, special attention was paid to the sensitivity of the context and the need for ease of use, ensuring that Ovumia can offer a smooth and reliable service channel. The new solution better reflects Ovumia’s brand in both visual design and usability.

The booking system was built on a modern and secure cloud platform to ensure reliability. The cloud-native solution runs on Microsoft Azure, leveraging managed services for core security and updates. The backend is built with .NET technology and the frontend with a modern React framework, enabling high performance and flexible future development. The application runs on Azure App Service and is fronted by Azure Front Door, adding an extra security layer and ensuring stable performance even during traffic peaks.

The architecture follows a white-label principle, meaning the same solution can easily be replicated and scaled to new clinics without major redevelopment. Together, these choices create a fast, secure, and easily maintainable solution that forms a strong technological foundation for Ovumia’s growth.

In addition, analytics and tracking capabilities were implemented, enabling Ovumia to monitor user behavior and booking conversion significantly more accurately than before.

HiQ occasionally took on a broader role than required in a multi-vendor environment and took responsibility for the overall schedule and budget

Collaboration with HiQ

Ovumia selected HiQ to build the new booking service because of their strong commitment, clear understanding of the overall challenge, and a cost level aligned with expectations.

HiQ’s proactive expert team received strong praise: “The collaboration went smoothly from the start, thanks to a great project team. As expected in projects like this, there were challenges, but they were resolved effectively. Issues were addressed early, and solutions were found without delay.

I would especially like to highlight the consistently positive and solution-oriented atmosphere.
It was also appreciated that HiQ occasionally took on a broader role than required in a multi-vendor environment and took responsibility for the overall schedule and budget. In the end, the implementation met all requirements, and the budget was not exceeded. I am very satisfied.”
— Jarno Huurinainen, COO of Ovumia and Head of Nordics for FutureLife.

Results: A Booking Service Aligned with the Brand Delivers from the First Interaction

The new online booking service functions as a clear, brand-aligned self-service channel where customers can easily find a suitable appointment and understand what they are booking. The solution offers a clear, user-friendly, and fast interface that integrates seamlessly into clinic operations, as bookings now automatically flow into the patient information system.

Although the new system has only been in use for a short time, its impact is already visible in customer experience, staff workflow, and business performance. From the customer’s perspective, the first contact with is smoother, as booking is clear, fast, and easy to find. Customers can now conveniently book appointments at a time that suits them best. The solution significantly speeds up access to care, which is critical in fertility treatment where time and emotional burden are key factors.

For staff, the solution reduces manual work. Bookings are now transferred automatically into the patient information system, reducing intermediaries in the process. This frees up time for professionals to focus on patient care and meaningful customer interaction.

From a business perspective, the new booking system improves efficiency and transparency. Customer flow becomes more controlled as a growing share of bookings is made online. The centralized, modern solution is designed to support Ovumia’s growth ambitions.

“This solution is a strategic investment that supports our goal of being a leading and most approachable provider in fertility treatments,” says Jarno Huurinainen.

During the first weeks, booking volumes have shown steady weekly growth, clearly indicating a positive direction. At the same time, the solution serves as a starting point for broader digital transformation, including upgrades to customer systems and underlying operational and patient data systems.

In the coming years, Ovumia expects a significant leap in digitalization and the use of AI in what has traditionally been a conservative industry.

Collaboration in brief

• A comprehensive renewal of online appointment booking: From a fragmented and rigid process to a unified, seamless, and customer-centric booking experience
• Self-service as the primary channel: The new online booking system makes accessing care fast and straightforward, reduces call volumes, and gives customers a genuine sense of control over their booking
• Modern and scalable technical solution: A cloud-native platform on Microsoft Azure, with a .NET backend and a React-based user interface, supports performance and future development
• Analytics and continuous improvement: Built-in tracking and analytics capabilities enable conversion optimization and a deeper understanding of customer behavior
• A strategic investment supporting business growth: The new booking service strengthens Ovumia’s brand, improves process transparency, increases the share of online bookings, and serves as a foundation for broader digitalization and the adoption of AI in a traditionally conservative industry