Take 5 With TVS Design’s Jay Patel
Image credit: Jay Patel / TVS
In this series, Healthcare Design asks leading healthcare design professionals, firms, and owners to share their ideas on topics that are top of mind.
Jay Patel is an associate at TVS Design (Atlanta), an architecture, planning, and interior design firm. Here, he shares the top five trends and issues getting his attention right now on the opportunities and impact of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare design.
- Enhancing onstage/offstage activities
Inspired by theater design, the onstage/offstage concept highlights the importance of showcasing only essential elements to the audience while keeping backstage activities hidden. This concept is increasingly applied in healthcare design and is now leveraging AI to enhance efficiency and patient care.
In the healthcare sector, AI strategies can be found in front- and back-of-house areas to help address challenges, such as staffing shortages and optimization of healthcare management tasks. For example, AI-powered sensors can adjust room conditions such as lighting and temperature levels (onstage), while behind the scenes, robotic systems manage supply and logistics (offstage).
These strategies can result in a ripple effect: With AI handling offstage activities, staff experience reduced stress and can focus on delivering compassionate care, leading to an improved patient experience.
- Saving time
AI and technological advancements have also improved patient communication. Patients no longer need to wait for a nurse to call loved ones.
Secure communication tools, such as the robots, enable patients to see and talk with their loved ones without compromising safety. These innovations save time for both staff and patients, allowing for necessary rest and more personalized care.
- Improving the design process
With AI’s support, design teams can better navigate project complexities, fostering unity and innovation. For example, virtual reality (VR) simulations help project teams envision spaces with clarity and purpose, identify potential issues, and optimize layouts before construction. End-users and clients can experience the space and provide feedback, ensuring the design is friendly to their workflow and needs.
Integrating VR, mixed reality (a blend of physical and digital worlds), and extended reality (an umbrella term for the various technologies that enable users to enter immersive worlds) expedites processes and accelerates research conclusions. These technologies create immersive environments for testing and refining design concepts, leading to more effective and patient-centric healthcare spaces.
Additionally, an AI-fortified integrated delivery system facilitates real-time collaboration and data-driven decision-making. AI can analyze data to suggest optimal design elements, improve resource allocation, and streamline project timelines.
- Cultivating care
In healthcare design, prioritizing happiness, sustainability, and well-being is crucial.
AI plays a critical role in optimizing energy usage and reducing a facility’s carbon footprint by analyzing data from sensors and smart systems to regulate heating, cooling, and lighting, thereby minimizing energy waste.
Focusing on patient care, VR-guided therapy programs offer immersive experiences for patients, facilitating relaxation, pain management, and rehabilitation. These programs can simulate calming environments or interactive activities tailored to individual needs, enhancing mental and emotional well-being.
Through AI-powered chatbots and predictive analytics, patient experiences are enhanced by providing personalized support, appointment reminders, and health-related advice in real-time. This fosters trust and proactive care by ensuring patients feel supported and informed throughout their healthcare journey.
- Connecting human creativity and AI
AI serves as a powerful ally in healthcare design, enhancing human-driven solutions rather than replacing human creativity.
By streamlining workflows and analyzing patient feedback through machine learning algorithms, AI can enable designers to create dynamic environments that prioritize innovation and compassionate care.
This symbiotic relationship between human creativity and AI-driven efficiency fosters the creation of patient-centric spaces that support patient and staff well-being.
Jay Patel is an associate at TVS Design in Atlanta and can be reached at [email protected].
Want to share your Top 5? Contact Managing Editor Tracey Walker at [email protected] for submission instructions.