Purpose In 2017, Taiwan will officially become an aged society. Aging, combined with the effects of a decreased birth rate, will create a serious work force shortage limiting options for providing senior citizen care. Consequently, the need for a tele-healthcare system will rapidly increase. A system must be developed that meets the needs of seniors, is easy to use and provides comfort to seniors. The design of such a system and process is therefore particularly important. Method This study uses Service Experience Engineering (SEE) to design a tele-healthcare model and identify hidden needs through service experiences. The designers of the study invited 20 tele-healthcare experts to brainstorm and note customers' needs, either known or potential; their analyses were then integrated into the model. The rationale is to use customer expectations as the impetus and thereby allow customers to participate in the design process. If deployment is carried out properly with attention to quality, customer needs will be met efficiently. By using the opinions of experts, the deployment and deployment matrix of the service function, a well-developed model for a senior citizen tele-healthcare system will be produced. Results & Discussion This study identified 40 client service needs, which are further divided into five categories by means of an affinity diagram. The five categories are: mental and physical senses, added services, health management, facilities, and, environment. Based on these customer needs, the experts brainstormed and devised 20 service functions, divided into four categories: system design, customer service, marketing management, and facility management. The overall result of our study is a product model for a senior citizen tele-healthcare system as well as the basis for a service plan, staff training, and software and hardware development.