THE SURFACES THAT SURROUND US WHILE WE HEAL

摘要

The mission of healthcare organizations is to provide patient care that is effective, medically relevant, and operationally efficient in a comfortable, convenient environment where the patient-provider relationship is at the center. To achieve these lofty goals, the healthcare industry has consciously shifted its focus towards patient-centered care that also considers the provider experience, and offers a retail approach to healthcare. Today's hospitals and healthcare organizations must continually assess and plan to meet the needs of a changing patient population that is becoming more diverse. Population size, age, obesity, race, culture, religion, language, and education all affect availability of resources, cost of care, and conditions associated with each population group. These characteristics drive expectations for care and define hurdles that have to be overcome in order to establish a patient-provider relationship that fosters trust. To build trusting relationships, this cultural complexity must be considered when creating the built environment where healthcare is delivered.