Evidence-based medical architecture and environmental psychology, for example, both concur on the value of the physical environment, including workspace, machinery, and climatic influences, in the recovery process of patients. Poor-quality sensory information appears to exacerbate emotional trauma and have detrimental consequences on the health and well-being of clients and employees (Duarte et al., 2019). These elements have also been linked to critical judgments about the general quality of hospitals, which are still seen as inhumane and unpleasant environments (Duarte et al., 2019). For a considerable portion of the population, healthcare institutions are still connected with horrific events (Duarte et al., 2019). Being in a medical facility is often regarded as dangerous and uncomfortable. Many individuals ignore healthcare facilities for many purposes, including feelings and pain, the emotional toll of watching other patients’ suffering, and the possibility of catching hospital-acquired illnesses (Duarte et al., 2019). These worries are shared by various people who are yet to have any form of hospital experience.
Previous research has suggested that the surroundings of the medical facility affect worker happiness, performance, and contentment. Medical advancements have enhanced some aspects of healthcare, such as protection, productivity, and convenience, but they have also introduced new challenges (Busch et al., 2019). The dehumanization and disengagement of treatment can result from the homogeneity of care and the separation of labor and treatment paths, often tied to scheduling and workforce restriction (Busch et al., 2019). The patient is often treated as a collection of symptoms rather than a person with particular requirements (Busch et al., 2019). Therefore, this can harm the doctor-patient connection and cause consumers and clinicians to lose faith in the public health sector.
Healthcare practitioners are primarily assessed in terms of their professional competence, and they are frequently viewed as a risk rather than a valued instrument in the public health system. Medical professionals may develop stress, depression, and emotional exhaustion (Busch et al., 2019). The notion of the humanization of treatment has been brought into medical studies to combat this destructive attitude toward healthcare (Busch et al., 2019). The most widely recognized essential characteristics of the humanization of treatment include respect for dignity, uniqueness, personality, compassion for people, appropriate working circumstances, and significant personnel and physical resources (Busch et al., 2019). Patients, guardians, medical professionals, and healthcare facilities should use the critical components highlighted to help them adopt humanized care.
Modern medical facilities are built to ease the emotionless settings that typified healthcare institutions in the late twentieth century, which could cause sentiments of suppression and processing. Given the seemingly significant investments made in enriching and inviting modern clinical settings, few research initiatives have efficiently analyzed their effectiveness and integrated customers frequently (Sadek & Willis, 2020). Patients, care providers, physicians, and the healthcare system should use the essential elements highlighted to help them adopt humanized care (Busch et al., 2019). Therefore, this paper aims to discuss some of the design elements within a healthcare institution that can impact the health and well-being of the patients in a more positive approach.
First, incorporating a patient-centered care design within a medical facility would significantly improve patient experience and recovery. This technique involves a true partnership between physicians and their patients, where the patient’s desires and objectives guide both healthcare decisions and performance monitoring. In a patient-centered paradigm, healthcare teams work together to understand and manage the whole person, creating tailored, extensive wellness programs that include mental health and social issues and standard medical therapy. Kusnanto (2018) elaborates that Patient-Centered Care (PCC) emphasizes the treatment options, interests, and goals instead of focusing primarily on the physician’s or healthcare institution’s interests. Compared to conventional medical paradigms, which emphasize the values of beneficence and autocracy, PCC is founded on the notion of sovereignty (Kusnanto, 2018). Additionally, PCC focuses on the patient as a human person rather than only the sickness (Kusnanto, 2018). Therefore, in PCC, the service results are determined by the patient’s wishes, not by established therapy recommendations, procedures, or medical paths leading to the wellness of patients.
Second, a comprehensive and whole family care approach within a medical facility would enhance positive health outcomes for patients. Multiple areas of healthcare quality, particularly efficiency, security, economic condition, clinical results of treatment, health experience, and staff satisfaction, are improved by patient and family involvement (Kokorelias et al., 2019). Patient and family interaction has several individual gains that add up to increased hospital effectiveness (Kokorelias et al., 2019). Family members play a pivotal part in the management of patients, particularly aiding the medical team in providing treatment (Kokorelias et al., 2019). Furthermore, family members enhance the security of patients, supporting in-home care, and satisfying the requirements of the patient’s family and community broadly.
Third, space is the cornerstone of an inner surface, and understanding it ensures that one is most positioned to utilize what is presented. Because the existing area cannot be easily adjusted, one must operate within the building’s physical constraints. A medical facility with adequate space is essential for the well-being of patients. Healthcare institutions are often faced with an influx of patients with different medical conditions. When the interior design of a medical institution has adequate space, then the spread of infectious diseases between patients or between patients and physicians would be minimized.
Additionally, the architectural environment has a significant impact on customer happiness, and in some cases, it’s even more effective than service quality. Because service employees are such a critical component of the customer experience in healthcare, knowing the implications of personal interactions and service delivery characteristics will provide a more comprehensive insight into consumer contentment. Diverse design methodologies lend themselves to various applications of space – a minimalist design, for instance, will have a particularly negative space than an ordinary eclectic layout (Gaffar & Kouchak, 2017). Therefore, adequate space within a medical institution is vital for ensuring maximum patient satisfaction and experience.
Fourth, light as an element of interior design effectively ensures that physicians effectively meet health outcomes. Whether natural or artificial, light is an important feature of any place (Mohamed, 2020). All other aspects would be unable to flourish to their maximum potential in the absence of light. Task lighting is used for a specific function, accent lighting is used to highlight elements, and mood lighting is used to create an atmosphere (Mohamed, 2020). As a consequence of being isolated from the natural environment, patients frequently experience anxiety and spend long periods in hospitals. Patients should have convenient access to natural components such as sunlight, sceneries, natural lighting, and green areas because nature is thought to be a good platform for reducing stress, improving health, counseling, and preventing diseases (Mohamed, 2020). The merging of these aspects with the facility’s ventilation system could speed up the recovery process and minimize weariness and emotional distress, lowering drug use, particularly for individuals who spend a significant amount of time in the same section, such as critical care patients.
Lastly, color as an interior design element is pivotal in any healthcare institution to ensure that the patient recovers well. Color is a discipline in and of itself, and it is yet another crucial factor that interior decorators comprehend (Savavibool et al., 2018). Color is explored as yet another ecological unit that has a significant effect on patient thinking and satisfaction in environmental psychology. A warm color stimulates people, while a cooling color relaxes them. Color in the workplace can influence physiological reactions such as pulse rate, apprehension, and comfortability. It has the power to set the tone, establish unity, and change how big or tiny a place appears (Savavibool et al., 2018). Color may elicit memories and elicit emotions, causing our bodies to react physically and psychologically (Savavibool et al., 2018).
Color in healthcare institutions has been shown to impact human behavior and attitudes, particularly mood, wellness, and productivity. Color can boost a happy mood, add wellness, and lead to great consequences in the workplace. It is critical to grasp the full scope of how different workplace colors affect people. Greens and blues, for instance, promote relaxation and are appropriate for guestrooms, while red stimulates appetite and is frequently used in kitchens (Savavibool et al., 2018). Therefore, appropriate color design within a medical facility will greatly improve patients’ wellness in their recovery process.
In conclusion, it is clear from the above discussion that a humanizing environment is vital for better clinical outcomes and the well-being of patients. Better working conditions and adequate human and physical resources improve the quality of nursing services offered by clinicians, therefore, improved patients’ well-being. Patient-centered care design has proven essential in healthcare institutions as it involves a true partnership between physicians and their patients. The patient’s needs and aspirations determine both medical choices and how performance is monitored. Additionally, Patient-Centered Care (PCC) emphasizes the treatment options, interests, and goals instead of focusing primarily on the physician’s or healthcare institution’s interests.
Interior design elements such as adequate space, lighting, and the appropriate color enhance wellness and positive health outcomes for patients. For instance, adequate lighting is essential for patients in critical care because they spend most of their time in the critical care rooms. Color in healthcare institutions has been shown to have a major impact on human behavior and attitudes, particularly mood, wellness, and productivity, as it can boost patients’ moods, thus adding to their wellness. Adequate space, on the other hand, is vital for ensuring maximum patient satisfaction and experience.
However, the negative implications would be clear where a dehumanizing environment is provided. Poor health outcomes, poor nurse-patient relationships, wrong diagnosis and treatment of diseases, and poor communication are, but a few of the negatives that would occur in case medical institutions provide a dehumanizing environment. Therefore, healthcare institutions should ensure that the environment they provide for both the patients and the nurses is human enough to meet the needs and requirements of patients. Not forgetting, a humanizing environment is vital for the attainment of maximum output by healthcare professionals.
References
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