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Volume 18
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Article

Designing a Patient Room as a Fall Protection Strategy: The Perspectives of Healthcare Design Experts

by
Melissa Piatkowski
1,
Ellen Taylor
1,*,
Bob Wong
2,
Dorothy Taylor
3,
K. Bo Foreman
3,4 and
Andrew Merryweather
3
1
The Center for Health Design, Concord, CA 94520, USA
2
College of Nursing, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
3
College of Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
4
Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(16), 8769; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168769
Submission received: 30 June 2021 / Revised: 15 August 2021 / Accepted: 17 August 2021 / Published: 19 August 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Improving Patient and Staff Safety through Evidence-Based Healthcare Design)
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Abstract

Despite decades of research into patient falls, there is a dearth of evidence about how the design of patient rooms influences falls. Our multi-year study aims to better understand how patient room design can increase stability during ambulation, serving as a fall protection strategy for frail and/or elderly patients. The aim of this portion of the study was to ascertain the architect’s perspective on designing a room to mitigate the risk of falls, as well as to evaluate the face validity of a predictive algorithm to assess risk in room design using the input of a design advisory council (AC). The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the design process and decision-making for patient rooms; summarize the impressions of industry experts about the configurations and layout of the patient rooms tested in a preliminary augmented reality model; establish the face validity of modeled heat maps depicting risk; and report the results of a pre-meeting and post-meeting survey of expert opinions. Feedback was coded using human factors/ergonomic (HF/E) design principles, and the findings will be used to guide further development of an “optimal” prototype room for human subject testing. The results confirm the challenges that architects face as they balance competing priorities and reveal how a participatory process focusing on preventing falls can shift assumptions about design strategies, especially subtle changes (e.g., toilet orientation).
Keywords: falls; evidence-based design; patient room; frail/elderly; risk; augmented reality falls; evidence-based design; patient room; frail/elderly; risk; augmented reality

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MDPI and ACS Style

Piatkowski, M.; Taylor, E.; Wong, B.; Taylor, D.; Foreman, K.B.; Merryweather, A. Designing a Patient Room as a Fall Protection Strategy: The Perspectives of Healthcare Design Experts. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 8769. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168769

AMA Style

Piatkowski M, Taylor E, Wong B, Taylor D, Foreman KB, Merryweather A. Designing a Patient Room as a Fall Protection Strategy: The Perspectives of Healthcare Design Experts. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(16):8769. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168769

Chicago/Turabian Style

Piatkowski, Melissa, Ellen Taylor, Bob Wong, Dorothy Taylor, K. Bo Foreman, and Andrew Merryweather. 2021. "Designing a Patient Room as a Fall Protection Strategy: The Perspectives of Healthcare Design Experts" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 16: 8769. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168769

APA Style

Piatkowski, M., Taylor, E., Wong, B., Taylor, D., Foreman, K. B., & Merryweather, A. (2021). Designing a Patient Room as a Fall Protection Strategy: The Perspectives of Healthcare Design Experts. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(16), 8769. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168769

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