by Shane Henson — August 31, 2013—More than ever before, healthcare providers are faced with a wide variety of environmental and societal challenges, including managing infection control, the introduction of smart technologies, adjusting to emerging risk factors, and payment reform, just to name a few. NXT Health, a nonprofit organization dedicated to collaborative design innovation to improve the delivery of care, unveiled Patient Room 2020, an interactive healthcare living laboratory that responds to the needs of doctors, nurses, patients and their families by creating a safer, more streamlined, integrated and restorative environment.
NXT Health recruited more than 35 product and service partners to contribute to the creation of Patient Room 2020 through product and service donations. The room NXT Health and partners developed was installed in a custom space at the DuPont Corian Design Studio in New York City, which is owned by DuPont, Evans & Paul, and Dolan & Traynor.
The 400-square-foot patient room prototype leverages a broad collection of technologies, and brings together architecture, technology, care processes, and human factors into a holistic, systematic solution for the inpatient care experience.
Key technologies integrated into the design of the room include:
- Patient Ribbon: collects many of the disparate elements commonly found in healthcare environments into a single, streamlined, patient-centered design response that encompasses headwall to footwall;
- Patient Companion: combines two ubiquitous elements, an over-bed table and a touch-screen tablet, to form a single piece of mobile furniture that could be utilized in a wide range of healthcare settings;
- Open Bathroom: adaptable bathroom concept that features a sliding door system which can be reconfigured based on care needs;
- Caregiver Station : entry workstation featuring integrated hand-washing indicator lights, concealed accessories, and radio-frequency identification (RFID) enclosure; and
- Caregiver Hub: deployable bedside work area with embedded technology, simulated ultraviolet (UV) light sanitization, and wireless device charging stations.
“We’re incredibly supportive of NXT Health and their vision of creating solutions through collaborative design,” said Susan Homan, commercial marketing manager for DuPont Surfaces. “The DuPont Corian Design Studio is an ideal home and incubator to further test the full-scale prototype and engage with architects, designers, and healthcare professionals.”
