Insights & Solutions

As part of the Behavioral & Mental Health toolbox, in this issue brief you will learn about the prevalence of behavioral and mental health conditions as comorbidities; design strategies for promoting psychological wellness; and a systematic benefit analysis approach to meet the psychological needs of all.

This webinar introduces the new, easier to use, online interface for The Center’s Safety Risk Assessment (SRA) toolkit, a proactive and systematic approach to designing and renovating healthcare facilities for safety. Originally developed through research and consensus to support the requirements of the FGI Guidelines, The Center's research team will walk you through the why, what, and how of each part of the online SRA toolkit illustrating features with vignettes gathered from the testing process.  

Toward a Framework for Designing Person-Centered Mental Health Interiors for Veterans, Journal of Interior Design, DOI: 10.1111/joid.12095

The following are compiled from research literature, case studies, interviews, and other materials to provide an overview on the topic of aging populations.  

Learn about: How UMCPP accommodates the unique needs of senior citizens through a special ED unit, design features that were included to help older patients and their families better navigate the space, and the hospital’s acute care for the elderly (ACE) unit, and why it is configured to transition senior ED patients for an inpatient stay in the most supportive environment.

This tool is meant to support a universal design approach to environments for aging populations. 

Aging often involves a multitude of changing needs and priorities. However, there are human needs and desires that remain constant throughout the life course. Design strategies for aging must not only address basic physiological and safety needs, but attend to higher-level human needs as well. The universal design approach is being adopted by many forward-thinking designers who aim to support equitable, flexible, and accessible environments for all users.

Learn about: the homelike model for resident care Riverside Assisted Living Facility Administration wanted to apply, the full-scale mock-ups of the proposed living spaces that launched the project, and the ‘neighborhood’ concept that enables greater resident independence as well as safety.

Healthcare is provided in a variety of settings, from a person’s home to outpatient clinics, to the hospital. While the settings and specific design elements may differ across the continuum of care, the objectives of safety, efficiency, satisfaction, and high quality care remain constant. This set of interactive diagrams provides a link between the evidence base, design strategies, and desired outcomes – in a visually intuitive and actionable format.

Patient falls are the most common adverse event reported in acute care settings, affecting from between 2% to 10% of annual hospital admissions. Patient falls cause increased morbidity, mortality, length of stay, and have significant cost impacts. One recent study examined the relationship of design factors in patient rooms to falls in 30 units in 15 hospitals. Results indicate key factors associated with higher numbers of falls, including multi-person rooms, shared toilet rooms, number and location of grab bars, and others. Explore the intrinsic and extrinsic factors on fall risk and the role design plays in mitigating these factors through real design solutions.