A few months ago, in a post about the 2008 Healthcare Design Conference, I mentioned some annual healthcare-related conferences for people interested in facility design. Since then, I have been wanting do a more comprehensive list of organizations that promote better healthcare design, and that have at least some interest in the role that wayfinding can play in improving the patient experience.
If you are a healthcare architect or facility manager who isn’t already familiar with all of these organizations, you should definitely give them a close look. And if you’re a wayfinding professional looking to develop a better understanding of how concepts such as family-centered care, patient satisfaction, and evidence-based design are shaping the environment at healthcare facilities, these groups are a great place to start.
1. The Center for Health Design
The Center for Health Design is the most active and robust of the organizations listed here. They are the driving force behind the annual Healthcare Design conference, which is the premier event for people interested in healthcare facility design, and they are also the creators of the Pebble Project, which is documenting the financial and quality-of-care benefits of better facility design, and the Evidence Based Design Accreditation & Certification program.
This is also the organization that gives the most attention to wayfinding, and seems to best understand both the impact that wayfinding can have on the patient experience, and amount of strategic thinking that goes into the development of a truly effective wayfinding program. They regularly feature presentations on wayfinding at the Healthcare Design conference, and have included the subject in many of their educational and research materials.
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