Healthcare Interior Design 2.0

Rosalyn Cama, FASID, NCIDQ, EDAC, President and Principal Interior Designer at CAMA Inc. on The Time Between - traditionally known as "waiting time" in the hospital and healthcare setting. Rosalyn shares, "The space between care delivery can be so much longer. We decided to map these experiences and called it The Time Between. We wanted to know what people were thinking, feeling and seeking for di...

Dr. Diana Anderson, a licensed and board-certified healthcare architect and licensed Internist, on the growing role of the physician in healthcare design, and why she invented the term "Dochitect." She describes, "Even when I'm on rounds now in medicine, I'm constantly looking up at the lighting, looking at the ceiling tiles, and counting the square footage of a room, or really considering how the...

In the second half of Cheryl's conversation with Dr. Diana Anderson, they discuss this idea of what is the moral imperative of the architect to communicate research to clients and discuss potential benefits and harms of design. "Architects are sometimes torn between thinking about the state of healthcare outside of their individual project to a client," Diana shares. "And I think we often have res...

Suzanne Fawley - Behavioral Health Consultant at Stance Healthcare on her early childhood experiences in the ED where her mother was an RN and the director of the department. "There were times when the school bus let me off at the hospital," explains Suzanne. Most of the time I watched people, and noticed how they processed anger or hurt and pain, and illness." This and more on the changing face o...

In the second half of Cheryl's conversation with Suzanne Fawley, Suzanne breaks down her first furniture design for Stance Healthcare, which won the Resilia/HD Nightingale Award. Suzanne shares, "Resilia offers the same cylinder shape table that is often seen in the industry, however, the surround is made out of forbo marmoleum which is an asbestos free flooring. You can't pick at it and pull it a...

Tama Duffy Day, Health & Wellness Leader at Gensler Architecture on the power of engaging the design professional to improve health and wellness, globally. Tama shares, "Whether I'm in Taiwan or China or Ireland or Pakistan or even domestically, talking with students in Fayetteville at the University of Arkansas or Moscow at the University of Idaho, or Chicago or The New York School of Interior De...

In the second half of Cheryl's conversation today with Tama Duffy Day, Health & Wellness Leader at Gensler Architecture, Tama offers insight into her two-year position as podcast host on Gensler's popular podcast, Design Exchange. Tama's gives her advice to other design firms about whether or not to start their own podcast. She shares, "Being a podcast host gives you an opportunity to allow someon...

Whitney Hendrickson, former Pediatric RN and current Healthcare Interior Designer at Perkins+Will shares her thoughts on what hospitals might look like in the year 2040.  "I'm sure there will be smart footwalls, maybe an Alexa-style nurse call system, a way to take peoples' weights through the floor and their blood pressure through the bed they are sitting in,"   says Whitney. Tune into this and m...

Teri Lura-Bennett, Lead Interior Designer at Johns Hopkins Health System and a registered nurse on how to reduce those incessant beeping noises in the hospital space.  "I have an Apple Watch and when I'm driving it will tap me when it's time to turn, and it would be as simple as that. A little tap and a visual code that says, room 422,"   Says Teri about a possible tech solution to the beeping noi...

My guest today is Amy Mays, Interior Design Practice Leader at HDR's New York, New York architecture studio. "There are kiosk check-ins and wait time calculators so members are constantly informed," says Amy about the changing face of waiting rooms at Kaiser Permanente. She draws an analogy between a patient waiting for their appointment and a passenger on an airplane. When there is zero communica...

In the second part of my conversation with Amy Mays, Interior Design Practice Leader at HDR's New York, New York architecture studio, Amy shares what it was like to walk into the operating room to have 20 strangers staring at her right before her serious brain surgery, and how that experience changed her approach to healthcare design. "I ended up having a benign brain tumor and it blew my world ap...

Today I'm joined by the wicked smart, funny and talented Sara Parsons, Principal at Gallun Snow - a nationally recognized interior design firm that specializes in healing, learning and community environments. She says, "As convenience junkies here in the States, I'd bet that by the year 2040, we're going to have more healthcare on our terms." Sara shares how the future of preventative wellness wil...

In the second part of my conversation with the talented Sara Parsons, Principal at Gallun Snow Interior Design , Sara discusses the importance of artwork, color and furnishings in the behavioral and mental healthcare setting. She says, "The evolution of the design in behavioral and mental health facilities is exciting right now because there are finally options that don't look like a prison aesthe...

Today, I'm joined by Debra Levin, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Center for Health Design --a nonprofit organization whose mission it is to transform healthcare environments into a healthier, safer world through design research, education and advocacy, and the creative use of evidence based design. We discuss a range of topics, and Debra shares her journey into compassionate leadersh...

In the second part of my conversation with Debra Levin, CEO and President of The Center for Health Design, you'll hear about Debra's "aha" moment when she was with her dying mom in the ICU and subsequent hospice care. That, and how healthcare has radically changed in the past 10 years with the blurring of the lines between retail, hospitality and healthcare. To learn more about The Center for Heal...

Today I'm joined by Lisa Bonnet, Senior Interior Designer at the prestigious e4h -  Environments for Health Architecture - a global architecture firm committed exclusively to the design of innovative health facilities. We discuss what's it's like to provide comfort to someone in a difficult situation or help someone celebrate a health milestone through the design of the hospital space. Lisa shares...

In the second part of my conversation with Lisa Bonnet, Senior Interior Designer at the prestigious e4h -  Environments for Health Architecture, Lisa discusses the advancements in surface products in the hospital space that have contributed to the reduction of Hospital-Acquired Infections. In older hospitals, countertops around sinks have traditionally been unhygienic areas where bacteria and othe...

Today I'm joined by Scott McFadden, Director of Design at BSA LifeStructures --an architectural and engineering firm that designs facilities to support, enhance and inspire healing, learning and discoveries. Scott is brilliant and passionate, and generously shares his wisdom from his 30 years of design work. My favorite part of the conversation was learning about one of BSA's latest projects calle...

In the second part of my conversation with Scott McFadden, Director of Design at BSA LifeStructures --an architectural and engineering firm that designs facilities to support, enhance and inspire healing, learning and discoveries-- you'll hear how on larger projects, the team builds what they call a life size "Cardboard City" in a big warehouse to test out the plan, show it to the client, and then...

In part 2 of my interview with Avigail Eisenstadt, CEO, Founder and Principal Interior Designer at AE Design Group, Avigail generously shares the nooks and crannies of the teams' process of a healthcare project, from interviewing the staff to how the team decides what is best for improving the resident experience in every corner of the building. I was surprised by the depth of detail that is invol...

Today, I'm joined by Avigail Eisenstadt, CEO, Founder and Principal Interior Designer at AE Design Group. We discuss what is was really like for Avigail to land her first nursing home gig only one day after graduating from New York School of Interior Design, and her surprise of how much she loved it! We also speak about how Avigail blends her own unique style of hospitality design with her healthc...

Join in today's episode with our lovely guest Aimee Burmaster Hicks — Principal at Page Architecture firm at their Texas location. Aimee specializes in space planning and interior design development for corporate and healthcare clients. Her leadership role with Page builds on her commitment and collaborative approach to her work. "I like the idea of freedom within commitment. Being truly committed...

Join in this special interview with Rebecca Rothstein --  Board Chairwoman, Executive Committee Chair and founding member of Teen Cancer America -- an organization founded by The Who's, Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend. The mission of Teen Cancer America is to raise the bar on how young people with cancer are treated by establishing specialized facilities and services to help meet their physical a...

Today I have something a bit different and special to offer you--Two fabulous guests instead of one talking about one of my favorite subjects and I know yours too--healthcare interior design and environments for aging! I had the pleasure of talking to Kristin D. Zeit - publisher of Healthcare Design and Environments for Aging magazines, and Jennifer Kovacs Silvis, editor-in-chief of Healthcare Des...

Join in this refreshing conversation with Tiana Lemons, Senior Associate, Healthcare Studio Leader for architectural firm Orcutt | Winslow's Nashville office. For the past 25 years, Tiana has given her talent to designing healthcare facilities across the country. Both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations have benefited from her keen eye and design sensibilities, including HCA, The Healthcar...