Designed to heal

Very soon, every single establishment will parade as a hotel industry unit. It’s bad enough that regular spaces such as salons and banks imitate hotel-spa concepts, but now hospitals too seem to be following suit.

But when it comes to medical institutions catching up with this trend, you cannot take it at face value – for good reason, really. The little touches of the Leonardo da Vinci painting on the wall, the natural window views and maybe Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony or Pavarotti in the background in your average hospital room, could potentially reduce recovery time.

In other words, these décor changes (well, maybe not as grand as a da Vinci painting) go beyond the adage of old content in new packaging. The nub of healthcare design is to make a patient feel
better – faster.

A quick sweep through scientific data to establish the link between design and patient benefits reveals that research is nascent. Still, it is hard to ignore what is increasingly becoming the norm of a hospital’s functioning – ambient facilities and hospitality. The former feature has hospitals going the extra mile to create a comfortable and pleasant atmosphere. Some do this by positioning pieces of art and sculpture, others by designing the room around views of nature, and yet others by doing something as
simple as carpeting an area to minimise noise.

Innovative ambient concepts

Healthcare architects, designers and space planners – as they are called – have introduced innovative design concepts ranging from the expected to the unheard of.
They not only consider the R&D aspect of these design technologies, they study the healing impact of factors such as room size and scale, privacy, lighting, ventilation, the colour of walls and furnishings, fabrics, art, music and views.

In fact, hospitals themselves evaluate the healing impacts, says Amer Salha, the head of Medical Equipment Planning at the American Hospital in Dubai.

“The evaluation plays a major role in reviewing current services and planning modifications, and considers the future expansion [of the hospital]. In general, hospitals are aware of the benefits of improved surroundings and pay more attention to patient experience,” he says.

A few findings validate how changes in décor reduce recovery time for a hospitalised patient. Notably, findings from the Johns Hopkins University that conducted a comprehensive review of 84 studies on the impact of health to demonstrate that the mind, brain and nervous system can be directly influenced positively or negatively by elements in the environment. Further validation comes from a study conducted by Marina de Tommaso and a team from the University of Bari in Italy; they highlighted the aesthetic value of paintings on pain thresholds.

Music also forms a part of ambient facilities and the right kind is known to have a positive effect on patients. Studies from Pavia University in Italy showed that listening to certain genres can slow the heartbeat and lower blood pressure.

But regardless of what a hospital may choose to aesthetically improve its surroundings, the result is positive: the patient feels better and the hospital stands to benefit in terms
of a shorter length of stay, and hence, lower cost per case.

“A hospital’s rating is directly tied with its surgical outcomes and the length of stay; the shorter the stay,
the higher the rating,” Salha says.

Administration manager Garreth Estment from The City Hospital in Dubai, which won the Best Interior Design Award at the Hospital Build Awards Middle East last year, agrees. He says, “If you think about it, a nice and comfortable place makes you relax. It also creates a positive frame of mind and thereby assists with the healing process.”

In the UAE, an example of this trend is the ambient cardiac catheterisation laboratory at
the Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) in Abu Dhabi. It has been designed with scene projectors, special lighting and sound effects –  all targeted at optimising patient  care. And more importantly,  it has been clinically proven to  reduce anxiety.
 

However, aesthetic features by themselves aren’t enough. Functionality is just as important.

There should be a balance, says Estment. “No amount of pleasant aesthetic surroundings can dispel the anxiety of a clinical area if it isn’t functional.” In the same vein, ambient facilities need to be customised because they do not provide a one-size solution.

Different problems, different solutions

Ambient facilities need to be tailored according to whether it’s psychiatric, geriatric or postoperative care. Patients have different needs – whether it is lighting or furniture. Salha says, “In the psychiatric ward for example, we need to choose furniture to ensure that the patient doesn’t injure himself. Whereas in the geriatric ward, we have to choose beds with special pressure mattress to avoid bed ulcers.”

Healthcare design has to look at patients’ needs and how they react to different stimuli. “Each unit needs to be suited to a specific medical speciality and the patient’s individual needs,” says Estment.

Take lighting for example. A study from the US-based Lighting Research Center (LRC) shows how innovative lighting designs and advanced technologies, including LEDs, photosensors and occupancy sensors, can help seniors in long-term care environments maintain independence and be more comfortable.

There are several other areas where the right lighting can reduce the recovery period. According to Estment, these areas include ophthalmology, maternity wards, delivery rooms, paediatric wards and dialysis units.

Salha adds: “Lighting is an important consideration in the psychiatric and geriatric wards too. It [lighting selection] is crucial to create the effect of day and night for patients who are required to get rest or vice-versa.”In addition to aesthetic features, hospitals are also working towards providing up-to-date entertainment systems, internet connectivity and a host of other amenities in the hope that patients will enjoy their stay
and leave as soon as they feel well enough to do so.
– Carolina D’Souza is Lifestyle
Features Coordinator, Friday

Specialised companies

One company that specialises in this field is Philips Electronics, with its Ambient Experience suites. One of their clients in the Middle East is the King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center (KFSH) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Philips Ambient Experience integrates several technologies of lighting, sound, projection and RFID to allow patients to personalise their hospital environment.

There are a few other companies that do this too, says Estment. “Frank Shields Medical Equipment, a MRI [magnetic resonance imaging] shielding company, has created special lighting for MRI rooms that creates the illusion of being outside. This has a calming effect on the patient.” Salha adds there are a few more like the Sky Factory, TRUMPF Medical Systems and Wardray Premise.