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Media Contact: Sara Marberry 847.475.0427 tel.

CENTER TO DEVELOP NEW HEALTHCARE DESIGN LEARNING TOOLS & PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION PROGRAM

February 9 , 2006 - The Center for Health Design (CHD) has received grant support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop tools and resources to help healthcare executives and design professionals better understand and use the evidence to build better buildings. Included are a series of issue papers, a design guidebook, a web-based facility tour tool, and an evidence-based design certification and assessment program (EDAC).

As healthcare organizations begin to experience a major building boom–with more than $200 billion expected to be spent on new hospitals in the next decade–there is a solid knowledge base about the science of healthcare design to make future hospitals and clinics safer, quieter, less stressful, and truly healing environments. The result is that most healthcare organizations that are building new projects are now asking for evidence-based design in their requests for proposals; however, there are currently no standards to qualify an evidence-based design practitioner or project.

With EDAC, CHD seeks to provide a standard of measurement and help to advance the science of the design process and evidence-based design for healthcare.

"We are pleased that the Foundation continues to support our work to improve the quality of healthcare by improving the quality of the environment in which care is delivered, particularly at the patient bedside," says Debra J. Levin, President of The Center.  "Without its support, we wouldn't be able to produce these valuable learning tools and professional certification program."

The learning tools include:

• Issue Papers:  Series of four “easy-read” authoritative, referenced papers by various authors on different topics.
• Design Guidebook:  60-page visual guide with annotated photos, evaluations, and floorplans of project examples. 
• Healthcare Design Web:  Online tool that allows users to explore photos, text, plans, immersive images and data drawn from CHD best-practice Pebble Project partners and others.

The total amount of the RWJF grant to develop, produce, and launch the learning tools and develop and launch EDAC is $748,000. The estimated time for completion is 6-12 months.

CHD is a nonprofit research and advocacy organization whose mission is to transform healthcare settings into healing environments that improve outcomes through the creative use of evidence-based design.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and healthcare issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and healthcare of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 30 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and healthcare of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime.