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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 42

Systematic light exposure in the treatment of cancer-related fatigue: a preliminary study: Systematic light exposure in the treatment of cancer-related fatigue

Author(s): Redd, W. H., Valdimarsdottir, H., Wu, L. M., Winkel, G., Byrne, E. E., Beltre, M. A., Liebman, E. S., Erazo, T., Hayes, J. A., Isola, L., Scigliano, E., Meschian, Y., Lutgendorf, S., Ancoli-Israel, S.
Patients with cancer frequently report the side effect of fatigue, which is described as distressing, persistent, and related to physical, emotional, and cognitive tiredness or exhaustion. Patients report feeling tired after resting during their treatments and long after the treatment has ended.
Key Point Summary
Added November 2016

The ability of environmental healthcare design strategies to impact event related anxiety in pediatric patients: A comprehensive systematic review

Author(s): Norton-Westwood, D.
Healthcare settings such as hospitals or dentists’ offices have been known to contribute to the anxiety often experienced by patients receiving treatment. Anxiety has been linked to various health concerns, manifesting both physiologically and psychologically, that can result in prolonged hospital stays and other complications.
Key Point Summary
Added June 2016

A nursing home staff tool for the indoor visual environment: The content validity

Author(s): Sinoo, M. M., Kort, H. S. M., Loomans, M. G. L. C., Schols, J. M. G. A.
Visual impairments affecting residents of nursing homes can arise from numerous causes, and they can directly affect these residents’ quality of life by jeopardizing their ability to participate in daily activities such as reading, watching television, or even interacting with others. The physical makeup of the nursing home itself can work to either help or hinder its residents, and in cases in which the environment is beneficial, the nursing home can be called an “environmental fit.
Key Point Summary
Added June 2016

Impact of the Physical Environment of Residential Health, Care, and Support Facilities (RHCSF) on Staff and Residents A Systematic Review of the Literature

Author(s): Joseph, A., Choi, Y.-S., Quan, X.
Strategies related to the design of the built environment should be considered within the context of the culture of the organization and the resident population. This study of the physical environment of residential health, care, and support facilities addresses the range of settings and population, where other studies have been lacking. The literature review strongly suggests that the built environment is an important component of care provided in residential care settings.
Key Point Summary
Added May 2016

Shaping the slats of hospital patient room window blinds for daylighting and external view under desert clear skies

Author(s): Sherif, A., Sabry, H., Wagdy, A., Mashaly, I, Arafa, R.
Many previous studies have shown how natural lighting can contribute to the healing nature of a hospital’s environment by reducing patient fatigue, stress, and length of stay. Desert locations are often characterized by continually clear skies, making control of the sunlight even more essential to patient satisfaction. It is therefore important to determine the optimal shape of window blind slats so that discomfort can be reduced without compromising levels of illumination.
Key Point Summary
Added April 2016

Developing the Birth Unit Design Spatial Evaluation Tool (BUDSET) in Australia: A Qualitative Study

Author(s): Foureur, M., Leap, N., Davis, D., Forbes, I., & Homer, C.
To develop a tool to assess the “optimality” of birth unit design. This is important because “Optimal birth spaces are likely to enable women to have physiologically normal labor and birth.”
Key Point Summary
Added January 2016

Designing a “Think-Along Dwelling” for People with Dementia: A Co-Creation Project Between Health Care and the Building Services Sector

Author(s): Van Hoof, J., Blom, M. M., Post, H. N. A., & Bastein, W. L
Many of the elderly prefer to age-in-place. However, if one of the elderly developments dementia, particular challenges may be posed when designing, constructing, or retrofitting an existing home environment. In the Netherlands about two-thirds of the people with dementia live at home. This is the setting for this study.
Key Point Summary
Added January 2016

The Impact of an Acute Psychiatry Environment on Older Patients and Their Families

Author(s): Hung, L., Loewen, E., Bindley, B., McLaren, D., Feist, T., & Phinney, A.
There is a lack of research that examines impact of the designed environment on the experience of older adults and their families in healthcare settings.
Key Point Summary
Added January 2016

Destination Bedside

Author(s): Watkins, N., Kennedy, M., Lee, N., O’Neill, M., Peavey, E., DuCharme, M., & Padula, C.
Patient-centered care (PCC) has been at the core of healthcare reform. Improvements and advancements in Healthcare Information Technology (HIT), Electronic Health Records and inpatient unit layout have been some means that aim to achieve PCC. Also key to PCC is the alleviation of medical errors, which HIT and related technology can help achieve.
Key Point Summary
Added January 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

Implications of the emergency department triage environment on triage practice for clients with a mental illness at triage in an Australian context

Author(s): Broadbent, M., Moxham, L., Dwyer, T.
Emergency departments (EDs) in Australia have been seeing an increase in recent years in the number of patients presenting with mental illness. This study aims to determine if the triage environment of the ED influences the triage practice of ED nurses. Using an ethnographic approach, the research found that ED nurses felt that triaging mentally ill patients in an area that is very public, noisy, and lacks privacy can impact their ability to effectively conduct assessments and manage patients.
Key Point Summary
Added October 2015

Exploring Perceptions of Designers and Medical Staff in South Korea about Design Elements for the Elder-Friendly Hospital

Author(s): Kim, D., Lee, J. H., Ha, M.
The elderly population is growing around the world and so is the geriatric patient population. The authors indicate that despite the fact that the elderly will soon be the primary users of healthcare services, healthcare facilities are not designed for the elderly. In this study, designers and medical staff were asked to rate the importance of 33 design elements in the context of an elder-friendly hospital.
Key Point Summary
Added August 2015

Pre-versus post-occupancy evaluation of daylight quality in hospitals

Author(s): Alzoubi, H., Al-Rqaibat, S., Bataineh, R. F.
Studies show that most hospital occupants prefer natural daylight to electrical light. Daylight can be used to optimize patient comfort by creating a more attractive indoor setting. Daylight has been linked to higher levels of staff performance and productivity along with reduced energy use and hospital emissions. Comparisons of pre- and post-occupancy lighting levels evaluate how well a space being put to use matches the predicted situation.
Key Point Summary
Added March 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

Tailored lighting intervention improves measures of sleep, depression, and agitation in persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia living in long-term care facilities

Author(s): Figueiro, M. G., Plitnick, B. A., Lok, A., Jones, G. E., Higgins, P., Hornick, T. R., Rea, M. S.
In 2010, an estimated 5.1 million elderly Americans were affected by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD). Individuals with ADRD are often transferred into controlled environments due to common behavioral symptoms such as nocturnal wandering, disturbed sleep-wake patterns, agitation, and verbal or physical abuse.
Key Point Summary
Added March 2015

A plasma display window? – the shifting baseline problem in a technologically mediated natural world

Author(s): Kahn, P. H. Jr., Friedman, B., Brian Gill, Hagman, J., Severson, R. L., Freier, N. G., Feldman, E. N., Carrere, S., Stolyar, A.
The general purpose of this study is to test the physical and psychological effects of experiencing nature through a technology medium. Past research has shown that contact with nature can lead to “enjoyment, satisfaction, and increased levels of satisfaction with one’s home, one’s job, and with life in general” (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989, p. 173). So in an fast-changing world of technology-mediated healthcare, the question posed in this study revolves around whether simulated nature scenes can elicit the same health benefits that real nature has shown to produce.
Key Point Summary
Added November 2014

Sustained reduction in serious fall-related injuries in older people in hospital.

Author(s): Fonda, D., Cook, J., Sandler, V., Bailey, M.
Falls are the leading cause of injury in Australian hospitals, with 38 percent of all hospital incidents related to falls. In hospital settings, single interventions have not been proven successful in preventing or reducing falls, whereas multisystem or multi-strategy approaches have shown to be more effective.
Key Point Summary
Added November 2014

Applying root cause analysis to improve patient safety: decreasing falls in postpartum women.

Author(s): Chen, K. H., Chen, L. R., Su, S.
The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of interventions to prevent falls designed through hazard analysis using root cause analysis.
Key Point Summary
Added November 2014

A decade of adult intensive care unit design: a study of the physical design features of the best-practice examples

Author(s): Rashid, M., Abushousheh, A.
This article reports a study of the physical design characteristics of a set of adult intensive care units (ICUs), built between 1993 and 2003. These ICUs were recognized as the best-practice examples by the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, and the American Institute of Architects.
Key Point Summary
Added July 2014

Life Safety Code Comparison

Author(s): Crowley, M. A., Harper, J. E.
Added May 2014