Observant readers of HEALTHCARE DESIGN will recall that the last few December issues of the magazine have included a popular feature called “Twenty Who Are Making a Difference.” Our editorial team would ask recognized architects, interior designers, consultants, and others in the field to nominate their peers who they thought had made a significant difference in advancing the design of healthcare facilities. We invited them to name “stars”-both known and lesser-known-from their own companies, as well as from other companies who, despite working for competitors, deserved the recognition.

The editorial team would review these nominations and, in a most unscientific manner, choose the individuals to be featured in the magazine. Many factors would enter our minds, but there was no “formula,” no real reason for selection other than personal preference and the appeal of any given person’s story. While the piece was always popular with the audience (to say nothing of the winners!), the HCD team always felt that there must be a better way.

With that in mind, the most logical step was to open the decision to the public. In late April, we launched a public nomination period on the magazine’s Web site (http://healthcaredesi.wpengine.com) and asked our readership to tell us:

Who are the most influential people in healthcare design in 2009?

A shortlist of 50 names was established following the nomination period from which the final public voting took place. Taking the results from this final online voting, as well as votes from our esteemed Editorial Board and our publishing partners at The Center for Health Design, we have now arrived at a final list of 25 individuals.

On this list, you’ll find a veritable who’s who of the healthcare design industry, from architects and interior designers to academics and researchers. While there are still some bugs to be worked out of the process, we do feel that the list is fairly representative of today’s best and brightest, and we congratulate those individuals who made this final list-surely one of the most heartening and flattering forms of praise is recognition from one’s peers.

If you find yourself disagreeing with the results, I encourage you to watch these pages for instructions on how to vote in next year’s poll. And of course, congratulations to those outstanding individuals selected here!

Todd Hutlock

Editor-in-Chief

HEALTHCARE DESIGN

Most Influential

1 Robin Guenther

Principal, Perkins+Will, New York

2 D. Kirk Hamilton

Professor, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

3 Jain Malkin

President, Jain Malkin Inc., La Jolla, CA

4. Debra Levin

CEO, The Center for Health Design, Concord, CA

5. Cheryl Herbert

President, Dublin Methodist Hospital, Dublin, OH

6. Derek Parker

Director, Anshen+Allen, San Francisco

7. Christine Malcolm

Senior VP, Hospital Strategy & National Facilities, Kaiser Permanente, Oakland, CA

8. Craig Zimring

Professor of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

9. Roger S. Ulrich

Director of the Center for Health Systems and Design, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

10. Blair Sadler

Senior Fellow, Institute for Healthcare Improvement

11. Bill Rostenberg

Principal, Director of Research, Anshen+Allen

12. Anjali Joseph

Director of Research, The Center for Health Design, Boston

13. Elizabeth Brawley

Author, Principal, Design Concepts, Sausalito, CA

14. David Allison

Professor/Director, Clemson University Graduate Studies in Architecture+Health

Debajyoti Pati

15. Debajyoti Pati

Director of Research, HKS Architects

16. Rosalyn Cama

President, CAMA Incorporated, New Haven, CT

17. Tama Duffy Day

Principal, Perkins+Will, Washington, DC

18. Rick Kobus

Senior Principal, Tsoi/Kobus & Associates, Cambridge, MA

19. George J. Mann

Professor, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

20. Ana Maregatti

President, Maregatti Interiors, Indianapolis

Kathy Hathorn

21. Kathy Hathorn

CEO & Creative Director, American Art Resources

22. Frank Sardone

President & CEO, Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo, MI

23. Doug Wignall

National Director, Healthcare, HDR, Inc., Omaha, NE

24. Joyce Bromberg

Director of Research, Steelcase, Inc.

25. Joseph Kuspan

Sr. Vice-President, Karlsberger, Columbus, OH