An award-winning University of Limerick graduate who created a pregnancy test for blind women is now taking the innovation to the next stage.
Since graduating, Leah Shanahan has begun early-stage development of the world’s first fully accessible pregnancy test, AMY, as a startup, with plans to expand the technology to other rapid diagnostic tests, including ovulation, UTI and STI testing.
For many women, taking a pregnancy test is a private, emotional moment. For blind and visually impaired women, it can also require assistance, removing independence from an already intimate experience. It was this overlooked reality that inspired Shanahan to design AMY.
A graduate of of UL’s Product Design and Technology (PDT) programme, Shanahan did not initially set out to become a healthcare innovator. She began studying physics and maths in 2020 but quickly found the course lacked the creativity she was searching for.
“Physics and maths were so theoretical that I found there was zero creativity,” she said. “In product design it’s practical; you’re building, drawing, sketching. It’s creative, but there’s a lot of engineering too. It was that mix that drew me to the course.”
As part of her final-year project, Shanahan was required to identify a real-world problem and design a solution. She chose to focus on accessibility in women’s healthcare, specifically for blind and visually impaired women.
With support from Vision Ireland, she conducted research with four blind women, liaising with them throughout the design process for their feedback.
Through these conversations she discovered that pregnancy testing was just one of many challenges visually impaired women face in healthcare settings.
“It gave me new perspective as to how differently they navigate the world,” she admits.
“I always had an interest in women’s healthcare, and I am also blind in one eye. But there’s so much in this space that I was completely unaware of before I went into it.”
The development of AMY involved constant iteration. “I would design a solution, get feedback from the women, and go back and change it to be the most practical solution for this user group,” she said.
“I initially thought the results could be in Braille,” she said. “But through conversations with one of the women, I learned that most people don’t actually read Braille.”
The final outcome was AMY, a pregnancy test that communicates results through touch, sight, and sound, allowing users to interpret their results independently. The project received strong support from disability advocacy groups, something Shanahan said she did not take for granted.
“It’s always something you worry about when you’re designing for a user group that isn’t your own,” she said. “Thankfully, the feedback was really positive.”
Her work has received national recognition, including winning the Product and Services category at the Universal Design Grand Challenge and being named one of The Irish Independent’s 30 Under 30 for 2025.
“This product is entirely made possible by the four blind women that I spoke with at the beginning,” she said. “If it wasn’t for them, it wouldn’t have happened.”
Shanahan hopes AMY will not only offer independence, but reshape how designers think about accessibility.
“Designing for disabled people is designing for all people,” she said. “I would love to see more conscious awareness of disabilities in design development. This is really going to help people, that’s what drives me.”