DFH

Designing for Healthcare

Instructor: Chris Anthony

Start with a patient observation, do research, design something.  Formulate a question and create a prototype, software, visual art, design brief, etc.

“I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares” -Saul Bass

Patient Satisfaction has become an important thing with new health care laws.  Patient Satisfaction surveys now impact hospital earnings.  Currently 30% of bonuses determined via satisfaction surveys.

Improving patient outcome, experience, and satisfaction is important to hospitals now.

Patients value privacy, agency, and quiet.  Single occupancy is ideal but many hospitals were built for double occupancy.  Whether or not a room has a view of nature, or artwork, or temperature control can impact patient outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Discharge to a patient’s home is ideal, sometimes assisted care facilities are required but are costly.

Wolff’s Law: Bone in a healthy person or animal will adapt to the loads under which it is placed.

Gamification of recovery and physical therapy.

Once a patient is released it is difficult to get reliable data.

“Design from ideal.”  Prevention is preferable to treatment, pretreatment is preferable to emergency.

Some inside info on senior patients: Stubborn, rule followers, good patients.  Behavior and lifestyle modifications are easier to make in the short term, not so much in the long term.  They get bored and give it up.

Knee replacements are the most common joint replacement procedure in the US and it is on the rise.  More common with men.

Communication with patients has been reexamined.  The term “failure” is to be avoided in favor of more empowering phrasing that puts power in the hands of the patient.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for pain management.

Virtual consultation versus automatic scheduling.

Postoperative Buddy system lowers readmission rate.

Adherence to medication regimens.

Privacy issues.

Long term rehabilitation and postoperative follow up.

Ask a question and create something.

SLIDES.

Comments are closed