Jennifer Silvis

Of the healthcare executives who responded to a recent Trane survey, 96% said they believe that a hospital’s physical environment directly affects quality of care.

Much has been written about the need to create healthier environments in healthcare facilities. One might reasonably wonder why healthcare environments would be otherwise. However, after a generation of designing facilities to be more and more sterile, more and more suburban, and more and more maintenance-driven, it’s not hard to see why the pendulum might swing toward a more patient-centered environment.

Robert Shapiro recalls how tightening capital markets almost tripped up a $325 million construction project for North Shore-Long Island Jewish (LIJ) Health System, the nation’s second largest nonprofit healthcare organization.

It is estimated that by the end of the decade, close to $60 billion will be spent on healthcare construction, which implies that close to $300 million will be spent on art in healthcare. In the current economic climate, this investment cannot go unchallenged. Does the investment in art reap tangible, measurable, and accountable benefits to a healthcare organization?

The design of the Sulpizio Family Cardiovascular Center, a glass-wrapped jewel box created by RTKL, reflects the unusual nature of the facility itself.

While there are many uncertainties in the world of healthcare, there are even fewer certainties in the world of design. We do, however, have a new and well-established “normal” for the integration of sustainable design and sustainable operation practices into healthcare facilities, few of which draw more attention than those dedicated to cancer care, diagnosis, treatment, and research.

How can the right team overcome programmatic challenges, last-minute changes, and logistical difficulties to achieve a calming, healing environment for patients and families struggling with cancer?

Most people avoid hospitals, unless they work in one or have a medical emergency. After seeing the gem that is the Ministry Door County Medical Center (MDCMC) in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, this may change.

We are in the midst of a global war for healthcare talent.

Due to the looming retirement of millions of baby boomers and the relatively small size of Generation X, organizations across all industries are focusing their attention on the upcoming generation—Generation Y—to fill their employment needs.

Healthcare technology is revolutionizing the delivery of healthcare today. Federal government initiatives as well as deployment of new technologies are driving many of the architecture and design decisions in facilities today. Electronic medical records, wireless communications, medication bar coding, RFID technology, kiosks, and many other technology initiatives must be taken into consideration when planning for the interior design of facilities.

Here are some key considerations for optimal planning and coordination of architecture, design, and technology.