Case Study: Graphic Decisions A Deeper Look An ideal patient room must be right-sized, appropriately zoned and safe. We apply the tenets of evidence-based design and patient- and family-centered care to every aspect of our room configurations. We lead in-depth focus groups and mock-up sessions with caregivers, patients and their families to ensure the ultimate solution reflects the mission, values and vision of all constituents. The hallmarks of success are improved outcomes, reduced injuries and infections, and stellar patient satisfaction scores - which influence HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) and engender patient loyalty.
PATIENT BOARD DESIGN & LAYOUT
Project Information
CHALLENGE
Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
Creating a custom-sized and designed patient board to occupy the available space on the footwall legible from the patient bed and low enough for clinicians to reach for writing.
•
10,750 SF Renovation
•
14 private patient rooms
•
Decentralized nursing model
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In-room family amenities, including two-person day-bed and refrigerator
SOLUTION The top portion of the board, designed for personalization, incorporates an image which combines the themes of both The Tickle Tree and If You Hold a Seed books, so it is consistent in all patient rooms. This area includes space for the patient’s photo and name for easy viewing and to give the patient a sense of engagement.
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Literary Collaboration The Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York was in need
placed the boards in the existing PICU to solicit feedback from staff,
of a welcoming theme that children from three to 14 years old
patients and board members who placed stickers on their favorite
could relate to. An incorporation of children’s literature books
boards for each section.
was installed as a unique aspect to engage children and their parents throughout the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Three children’s books filled with warm, inviting illustrations were selected by the interiors team: Journey, If You Hold a Seed and The Tickle Tree.
After leaving the boards at the existing PICU for two weeks, the boards with two or more stickers were chosen for the first round of potential images. Over the next several months, the most common images were chosen for use in the interior presentations. The majority of chosen images were from If You Hold A Seed.
Illustrations from these books were made into boards for various sections of the PICU: patient room, corridor and lobby. The team
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To offer a variety of visual appeal, and with the Unit split evenly with
might need an encouraging metaphor for patience to be able to
seven patient rooms in each corridor, the interiors team returned
comprehend why they are in the hospital. The Tickle Tree’s message
to the original field study where they noticed that Journey had the
encourages strength in imagination. Your imagination can take
least amount of images chosen and no corresponding text, so it
you anywhere, even in the confines of a hospital, which could be
was discontinued from the study leaving two design options with If
frightening for some children.
You Hold a Seed and The Tickle Tree.
In the patient rooms, corridors and elevator lobby, inspirational text
Since the message from If You Hold a Seed focuses on the patience
from the books was placed to inspire growth and enrichment in an
it takes to grow a tree from just a seed and watch it flourish,
environment where art and imagery are paramount aspects in the
that theme was key in the patient board design. Some children
healing process.
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Who We Are ARRAY-ARCHITECTS.COM
We Are Healthcare Architects We are a team of architects and designers with unique backgrounds, but we all have one thing in common - we share a strong desire to use our expertise and knowledge to design solutions that will help people in moments that matter most.
Early Patient Board Iterations
On the patient room information board, the top of the board has space for a patient photo and name. This allowed the team to adjust the clinicians’ portion (important medication/allergy, dietary restriction information) so it was easily reachable. Care was taken to research proper translations and pair corresponding icons with which children can relate. Designating prime footwall real estate was also important, as the boards can be seen from the bed and bedside. Availing patients and
This focus makes us leaders in our field. There’s a degree of compassion, empathy, and sensitivity that goes into every project that we touch. It’s designing a nurse station with sight lines to every patient. It’s building a Behavioral Health facility without corners, so that patients are safe. It’s translating the operational needs through the technical details to fine tune the lighting system in a neonatal unit so caregivers can match the lighting to each baby’s stage of development. It is a deeper understanding, honed through relationships spanning decades. Together, we discover optimal solutions with our clients. It is our four decades of specialization that allows for effective communication, collaboration and precision in the complex, changing world of healthcare.
their families (daybeds in each room situated under the windows) of the board’s positive distraction,
placed
visual
Array’s Knowledge Communities
adjacent
with a large book graphic and
We believe strongly in sharing our expertise and knowledge with others. We invite you to explore each of our thought leaders and share your thoughts with the healthcare design community.
inspirational quote on the same wall
provides
something
to
discuss during stays. The coordinating super graphics,
Click here to visit our Thoughts page.
which run along the corridor walls, are visible from patient
Click here
rooms. Additional book quotes
to view a video featuring the Pediatric ICU
are found on the corridor cloudlike soffit - providing another positive distraction for families as they enter and leave the Unit, as well as staff while they work at either the central team station or the touchdown spaces between each room.
Listen to a podcast on the evolution of the graphic design process.
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Final Patient Board
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