Architecture and the Future of Health Care

Architecture and the Future of Health Care

Architecture plays a role in both the outward design and the interior function of a building. While the hospitals and healthcare centers of the past often suffered from a lack of innovative and functional design, today’s medical centers are benefitting from targeted architectural planning that improves the experience of both patients and physicians.

Bright, Natural Spaces

Numerous studies have been performed that establish a link between the design of an interior space and the mood it evokes in those who enter it. These studies have found that spaces featuring natural light, bright colors, and creative designs promote a more positive mood, which in turn has been linked with faster healing times among patients and improved concentration and performance among healthcare staff. Thus, today’s medical centers are often designed around features such as large windows, skylights, atriums, and artistic galleries or interior gardens, which help to create a brighter, more organic environment meant to facilitate healthcare and healing.

Improved Privacy

In the past, hospitals often turned to solutions such as doors and curtains in an attempt to promote privacy. Today, privacy and accessibility are being built into the design of modern medical centers from the ground up through the use of non-traditional building shapes, movable partitions, frosted glass, and the addition of more single-patient rooms for both outpatient and inpatient procedures. These design elements make the hospital a more pleasant place for patients to stay while receiving treatment, while also helping to accommodate a larger number of patients and allowing physicians the quieter, more personalized spaces they need to concentrate on providing individualized and targeted care.

At Sears Gerbo Architecture, we specialize in architectural planning and specialty architecture services in Tucson, AZ. We invite you to stop by our website to learn more about our architects or to browse through our portfolio of past projects; if you’d like to reach us for more information, please call (520) 722-5079 today.