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Knowledge Repository

A complete, user-friendly database of healthcare design research references MoreLess about the Knowledge Repository

The Knowledge Repository is a complete, user-friendly database of healthcare design research references that continues to grow with the latest peer-reviewed publications. Start with our Knowledge Repository for all of your searches for articles and research citations on healthcare design topics. Access full texts through the source link, read key point summaries, or watch slidecasts. Expand your search and find project briefs, interviews, and other relevant resources by visiting our Insights & Solutions page.

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Displaying 1 - 20 of 28

Bringing the single versus multi-patient room debate to vulnerable patient populations: A systematic review of the impact of room types on hospitalized older people and people with neurological disorders

Author(s): Shannon, M. M., Lipson-Smith, R., Elf, M., Olver, J., Kramer, S., Bernhardt, J.
Added February 2019

Evaluation of the use of a sensory room on an adolescent inpatient unit and its impact on restraint and seclusion prevention

Author(s): Seckman, A., Paun, O., Heipp, B., Van Stee, M., Keels‐Lowe, Vonda, Beel, F., Spoon, C., Fogg, L., Delaney, K. R.
Added October 2018

An evaluation of the use and efficacy of a sensory room within an adolescent psychiatric inpatient unit

Author(s): West, M., Melvin, G., McNamara, F., Gordon, M.
Added September 2018

Pilot study of a sensory room in an acute inpatient psychiatric unit

Author(s): Novak, T., Scanlan, J., McCaul, D., MacDonald, N., Clarke, T.
Added September 2018

Psychiatric ward design can reduce aggressive behavior

Author(s): Ulrich, R. S., Bogren, L., Gardiner, S. K., Lundin, S.
Added July 2018

The function and design of seclusion rooms in clinical settings

Author(s): Kaar, S. J., Walker, H., Sethi, F., McIvor, R.
Added October 2017

Evidence-Based Design Features Improve Sleep Quality Among Psychiatric Inpatients

Author(s): Pyrke, R. J. L., McKinnon, M. C., McNeely, H. E., Ahern, C., Langstaff, K. L., Bieling, P. J.
There are many factors present within psychiatric care facilities that can contribute to disrupted patient sleep patterns. Since poor sleep is widely associated with adverse health outcomes, it is important for designers to understand how the physical environments within mental health facilities can contribute to patient sleep patterns.
Key Point Summary
Added May 2017

Secondary exposure risks to patients in an airborne isolation room: Implications for anteroom design

Author(s): Mousavi, E. S., Grosskopf, K. R.
Previous research has shown that negatively pressurized Airborne Infectious Isolation Rooms (AIIRs) can protect hospitals from fatal airborne pathogens such as tuberculosis. But this use of negative pressurization can simultaneously increase the chances of isolated patients contracting secondary infections, or healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs), caused by air blowing in from adjacent spaces. Research is needed to better assess the actual likelihood of secondary infections occurring in these scenarios so that steps can be taken to mitigate these risks.
Key Point Summary
Added December 2016

Analysis of circadian stimulus allowed by daylighting in hospital rooms

Author(s): Acosta, I, Leslie, R. P., Figueiro, M. G.
Light is the major synchronizer of circadian rhythms to the 24-hour solar day. Compared to the visual system, the circadian system requires more light to be activated and is more sensitive to short-wavelength light. For those confined indoors, such as patients or residents in care facilities, the lack of access to daylight, or electric lighting providing a comparable amount, spectrum, distribution, duration, and timing, may compromise their human health and well-being.
Key Point Summary
Added November 2016

An Assessment of Levels of Safety in Psychiatric Units

Author(s): Bayramzadeh, S.
As mental treatment facilities see increases in the number of patients seeking care, facilities face mounting pressure in their attempts to promote patient well-being and safety. The author suggests that there is a lack of systematic empirical studies that examine how the design of mental healthcare facilities contributes to patient care and safety.
Key Point Summary
Added September 2016

Security Implications of Physical Design Attributes in the Emergency Department

Author(s): Pati, D., Pati, S., Harvey, T. E.
In this paper, the authors consider “security” a subset of “safety,” and note that security is imperative for providing efficient patient care, especially in emergency departments (EDs). Security is defined as the protection of people and property, while safety is defined as the broader concept of delivering patient care.
Key Point Summary
Added September 2016

Safety by design: effects of operating room floor marking on the position of surgical devices to promote clean air flow compliance and minimise infection risks

Author(s): de Korne, D. F., van Wijngaarden, J. D. H., van Rooij, J., Wauben, L. S. G. L., Hiddema, U. F., Klazinga, N. S.
Added July 2016

The Creation of a Biocontainment Unit at a Tertiary Care Hospital: The Johns Hopkins Medicine Experience

Author(s): Garibaldi, B. T., Kelen, G. D., Brower, R. G., Bova, G., Ernst, N., Reimers, M., Langlotz, R., Gimburg, A., Iati, M., Smith, C., MacConnell, S., James, H., Lewin, J. J., Trexler, P., Black, M. A., Lynch, C., Clarke, W., Marzinke, M. A., Sokoll, L. J., Carroll, K. C., Parish, N. M., Dionne, K., Biddison, E. L. D., Gwon, H. S., Sauer, L., Hill, P., Newton, S. M., Garrett, M. R., Miller, R. G., Perl, T. M., Maragakis, L. L.
Prior to the 2014 Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa, the United States had only one to three specialized biocontainment units. Once the EVD crisis began, a group of reputable American healthcare institutions worked together to renovate a deactivated clinical space into a functioning biocontainment unit (BCU).
Key Point Summary
Added April 2016

Is single room hospital accommodation associated with differences in healthcare-associated infection, falls, pressure ulcers or medication errors? A natural experiment with non-equivalent controls

Author(s): Simon, M., Maben, J., Murrells, T., Griffiths, P.
Previous studies have associated single-patient rooms with reduced infection rates, reduced medication errors, and faster patient recovery rates. In response, an increasing number of hospitals have been shifting towards an entirely single-patient room layout. Although there are plenty of studies from the U.K. providing empirical evidence for the efficacy of single-patient rooms, the United States lacks this foundation of published research, and could therefore benefit from an outcome analysis of single-patient rooms.
Key Point Summary
Added February 2016

Impact of healthcare design on patients’ perception of a rheumatology outpatient infusion room: an interventional pilot study

Author(s): Bukh, G., Tommerup, A. M. M., Madsen, O. R.
Evidence-based healthcare design is a concept aimed at reducing stress factors in the physical environment for the benefit of patients and the medical staff. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of room modifications on patients’ perception of an outpatient infusion room used for treating rheumatologic diseases. Patient and nurse interviews, a staff workshop and field...
Key Point Summary
Added December 2015

Preparing an ICU room to welcome a critically ill patient with Ebola virus disease

Author(s): Pasquier, P., Ficko, C., Mérens, A., Dubost, C.
Ebola virus disease is a viral hemorrhagic fever that spreads through direct contact with the body fluids of an infected animal or human. Contamination may also occur through contact with items that were recently contacted by infected bodily fluids. No spread of the disease through the air has been documented. As no specific treatment or vaccine for the virus is currently available, specially coordinated medical services are necessary to control outbreaks.
Key Point Summary
Added December 2015

Intensive care unit design and mortality in trauma patients

Author(s): Pettit, N. R., Wood, T., Lieber, M., O'Mara, M. S.
A primary concern for many patient care units is the question of where to place more seriously ill patients within the space that is available. Questions regarding the impact of architectural features, such as the availability of natural lighting, or adjacency to nurse stations on patient health outcomes should be further explored so that increasingly effective healthcare environments can be established. Currently, no data exist demonstrating whether trauma patients receiving treatment in intensive care unit (ICU) beds with poor visibility from a central nursing station experience health outcomes different from those in rooms that may be more visible from the nursing station.
Key Point Summary
Added December 2015

Do Cost Savings from Reductions in Nosocomial Infections Justify Additional Costs of Single-Bed Rooms in Intensive Care Units? A Simulation Case Study

Author(s): Sadatsafavi, H., Niknejad, B., Zadeh, R., Sadatsafavi, M.
Nosocomial infections are infections that are acquired in healthcare facilities. They are a key factor in decisions to construct and maintain single-patient bedrooms in intensive care units (ICUs), since single-patient rooms have been shown to greatly reduce instances of nosocomial infections. However, no prior studies have investigated whether the resource savings incurred from reducing nosocomial infections are worth the construction and maintenance costs required for single-patient bedrooms in ICUs.
Key Point Summary
Added October 2015

The Geriatric ED: Structure, Patient Care, and Considerations for the Emergency Department Geriatric Unit

Author(s): Burton, J. H., Young, J., Bernier, C. A.
Older patients who visit the emergency department in developed countries are more likely to require a more specialized nature of treatment in comparison to younger patients. The authors believe that current-day emergency departments are not equipped to adequately treat these patients in terms of design and staff training for assessments and evaluations unique to this age group. The authors recommend a geriatric-specific approach to designing patient treatment spaces, medical evaluations, neurocognitive assessments, and post-ED visit support.
Key Point Summary
Added June 2015

Impacts of indoor daylight environments on patient average length of stay (ALOS) in a healthcare facility

Author(s): Choi, J.-H., Beltran, L. O., Kim, H.-S.
One of the components that increases the quality of the indoor environment in hospitals is window views with access to daylight. The orientation of a window can be significant to the amount of daylight a room can get. This study examined the indoor environments of patient rooms located on different sides of a hospital building to investigate the impact of daylight on the length of stay.
Key Point Summary
Added March 2015