Session Description
Hospitals, clinics and other patient-care facilities are designed to aid in the care and healing of sick and injured people. Ironically, these same facilities can harbor unrecognized hazards and stresses for both patients and healthcare professionals. This course addresses the effect of space acoustics, flooring comfort and ergonomics, and slip-trip-and-fall dangers on the health outcomes we anticipate in healing spaces. The A&D community is increasingly utilizing an evidence-based approach to design. Evidence-based medicine relies on objective, repeatable data derived from studies and clinical trials to make decisions on appropriate medical procedures and care. Similarly, evidence-based design relies on data and measurable results from a clinical, operational, and business perspective to make design decisions in the built environment. And where verifiable data does not yet exist, designers may use rational inference to determine the best courses of action and design decisions.
Learning objectives:
- Better understand how clinical and healing-space acoustics can play a role in healing
- Learn about the correlation between comfort underfoot, ergonomics and staff health and well-being
- Understand the inherent hazards of slip, trip and fall in the healthcare environment and how flooring systems can reduce risk and improve safety
- Recognize how opportunities for better health outcomes can positively impact the business case for healthcare facilities
Presenter: Paul McKinney, Healthcare Segment Director, Gerflor USA