Evidence Based Environmental Design for Improving Medical
Outcomes
Roger S.
Ulrich, Ph.
D.
Director, Center for Health Systems and Design
Texas A&M University
College Station, Texas, USA
Introduction
Healthcare facility design traditionally has emphasized...
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Evidence Based Environmental Design for Improving Medical
Outcomes
Roger S.
Ulrich, Ph.
D.
Director, Center for Health Systems and Design
Texas A&M University
College Station, Texas, USA
Introduction
Healthcare facility design traditionally has emphasized concerns
such as functional efficiency, costs, and providing effective
platforms for medical treatments and technology.
A consequence
of this perspective has been that psychological and social needs
of patients have been largely disregarded in the design of
healthcare facilities – and often marginalized in creating visitor and
staff spaces.
In spite of traumatizing hospital experiences and
major stress from illness, little priority has been given to creating
surroundings that calm patients, or help to strengthen coping
resources and healthful processes.
Rather, the functional
emphasis often produced environments now considered starkly
institutional, stressful, and detrimental to care quality (Ulrich, 1992;
Horsburgh, 1995).
Ther
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