Healthcare Design Conference Post Show Wrap Up

“Seize opportunity from disruption and cast a design vision for the future”

Mo Stein FAIA, FACHA Principal HKS

Swarms of intelligent things working together…Digital twinning…Immersive experiences…Barriers dropping between design and business…. Trends in healthcare design noted by Mo Stein at the 2018 Healthcare Design Conference in Phoenix.  All of these trends shape the consumer trends which we as professionals have the responsibility to shape into the the fabric of future designs – one element of the patient experience equation.

Patient Experience:  “The sum of all interactions, shaped by an organization’s culture, that influence patient perceptions across the continuum of care.”

The Beryl Institute

Whether you attended sessions from Behavioral Health, Technology & Innovation, AIA-AAH Forum or one of the many other conference tracks provided at this year’s Healthcare Design Conference in Phoenix — you could see the common thread related to Patient-Focused care.  In fact, their session titled a “Deep Dive into the subsectors of Ambulatory Care” Craig Mulford and Steve Howard called what matters to you instead of what’s a matter with you a current healthcare megatrend.  With nearly 8 billion humans on this earth, that’s a lot of needs to comprehend!  

What is your role?

Working tirelessly as healthcare’s advocate is the Facilities Guidelines Institute (FGI), which shapes the best of evidence-based design concepts into realistic, safe and clearly published guidelines for the entire healthcare community.  Their session on FGI’s “Beyond Fundamentals” was a challenge to industry change-makers and advocates for person-centered health care solutions to continue providing access to a growing collection of healthcare design resources — and now Beyond Fundamentals is a forum/repository for these important initiatives.  The FGI continues to fight to trod through the red-tape offered by various Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) and is always looking for supporters, content providers and advocates willing to support their cause.  

The built environment is only a small part of the patient experience but much like the Apple Store and Amazon disrupted the retail experience — we have the responsibility of designing environments that make it easier to receive and provide care.  The Center for Health Design once again put on a conference that executed on their mission – what a great way to end 2018 and create some momentum for 2019!