Building Design + Construction - October 2019

16 | BUILDING DESIGN+CONSTRUCTION | October 2019

Tradition and

innovation.

Technology and

medicine. Retail and

clinics. Our solutions to

both today’s and

tomorrow’s challenges lie

at the convergence of

technologies, industries,

and types of care.

Here are fi ve

nontraditional health

partnerships that can be

forged to create forward-

thinking design that is both

adaptive and patient-centric:

1. TECHNOLOGY
   ENABLED EXPERIENCE
   Technology and patient
   care are merging to
   create greater agency,
   communication,
   transparency, and comfort
   for patients through
   technology-enabled
   experiences. Innovations
   based in this type of
   experience are breaking
   down the sterile, clinical

feeling of healthcare and

replacing it with a dose of

humanity.

The HDR-designed

Humber River Hospital in

Ontario, Canada, realized

the potential of technology

enabled experience as the

fi rst fully-digital hospital

in North America. All too

often, patient experiences

are characterized by

a frustrating lack of

autonomy, limited

accessibility to health

information, and feelings

of isolation. Humber

River addressed these

challenges with its Patient

Bedside Terminal, which

allows patients to view

their personal health

information, check the

weather and news, and

make calls, all from a

bedside touchscreen.

Hospitals are also

beginning to employ real-

time text communication

for patients’ families with

updates on their status.

2. RETAIL THINKING
   Retail design goes beyond
   simply drawing people
   inside the retail space and
   generating profi t. The key is
   designing spaces for people
   to have the right experience

at the right time. For health

design, that means creating

an engaging space that

entertains, nourishes, and

comforts patients all within a

clear message of sustained

health and wellness.

Omaha, Neb.’s THINK

Whole Person Healthcare

has reimagined the delivery

| THINK TANK | By Sangmin Lee, KIA, LEED AP BD+C, Principal, China Regional Director, Health, HDR

5 CONVERGING

TRENDS FOR

HEALTHCARE’S FUTURE

‘With implementations like scenario

mapping, designers are able to

measure the functionality of a design,

including how long it takes to get

from core space to a patient room.’

— SANGMIN LEE, KIA, LEED AP BD+C, HDR

THINK Whole Person Healthcare in Omaha, Neb., houses 24 primary care

physicians and more than 500 other healthcare professionals, including

therapists, nutritionists, mental health professionals, and health coaches.

COURTESY HDR