Called the ‘Design Guide for Health: Spaces, places and precincts’, the document demonstrates how great clinical design and spatial design can be delivered together. It outlines how embedding a range of priorities from the start of a project amplifies the potential to design health facilities that provide quality clinical care and meet the many diverse roles of health facilities, now and in the future.

The document is aimed at project directors, project managers, professional design consultants, and medical experts, and it follows the health infrastructure design process from initiation and feasibility, through planning and design development, to project delivery.

Extensive research shows that well-designed health environments improve workflow; reduce waiting times; improve patient recovery and rehabilitation; reduce the risk of hospital-based infections through improved air quality; and reduce length of patient stays.

Good design also enhances staff health and wellbeing, which helps attract and retain staff – one of the biggest challenges facing modern healthcare delivery today. And it can enhance and support cultural safety, too, providing support for cultural practices that care for Country and increase Aboriginal engagement with health services.

Content

The guide is divided into five parts, with the first section outlining why good design is fundamental to health projects and setting out the guide’s purpose and policy context.

The second section explores the myriad roles of health facilities, and the potential for design to support and enhance these roles. Hospitals and health facilities are providers of health services; they’re places for healing and care; they’re workplaces; and, potentially, they’re sites for learning and research. They also contribute to the narrowing of health inequalities and function as nodes within wider health infrastructure networks. As public places, they can contribute to their communities as good neighbours, while also positively shaping cities and regions as anchor organisations. And they have the authority and influence to act as exemplars of healthy places.

The middle section sets out the following seven principles to guide the briefing, design and development of health facilities of all types and scales: design for dignity; design for wellbeing; design for efficient and flexible delivery of care; design with Country; design for the neighbourhood and surrounding environment; design for connection; and design for sustainability.

Section four describes the core attributes of processes that support good design and identifies opportunities within the current NSW Health facility planning process. Issues covered include good design governance; vision, principles and objectives; design and place opportunities; the project design brief; independent design review; procurement delivery models; consultation processes; and integrated research and evaluation.

The final section lists the resources and documents that inform the design of health facilities.

Fundamentals should be non-negotiable

According to Health Infrastructure’s chief executive, Rebecca Wark, investment in good design will deliver value for money and ensure long-term performance, effectiveness, sustainability, and adaptability of the health system.

“As an organisation, we understand the significant opportunity and responsibility that comes with delivering a substantial capital works programme and are committed to innovating and building more sustainable, resilient healthcare infrastructure,” she said.

“People are at the centre of good design. Creating places that heal, enhance clinical service and wellbeing of patients, are supportive environments for workers and visitors and contribute to local public spaces, and connections with the community is what matters.”

In the foreword to the guide, Government Architect Abbie Galvin said: “By their very nature, hospitals can be some of the most stressful environments we will ever encounter. It’s critical to ensure the fundamentals of good design are non-negotiable. Natural light, fresh air, sunlight, landscape, access to the outdoors, spaces that are easy to navigate, and places of respite – all are essential to helping people navigate these difficult times with dignity.

“The Design Guide for Heath demonstrates how great clinical design and great spatial design can be delivered together, not at the expense of the other.”