Rethinking healthcare building design quality:an evidence-based strategy

What is it about?

Healthcare buildings play a significant role in delivering healthcare services and outcomes (e.g. quality, suitability, cleanliness, patient experience, value for money and risk mitigation). However, the current diffusion of responsibilities in England between central government and healthcare trusts has created gaps and weaknesses in the evidence base, knowledge, skills and tools for creating and assessing healthcare building design quality. How can a national healthcare building design quality improvement strategy be created? This question is explored in relation to policy, strategy and organizational issues. Four evaluation studies and four action research studies indicate the complexity and responsibilities in defining a design quality improvement strategy. It is found that the interdisciplinary development of national standards and tools requires centralized investment to facilitate nationwide learning and improvements in evidence and outcomes. In addition, the inevitable health policy changes made by successive governments require a sustainable and strategic response. The creation and maintenance of capacity and capabilities will require a dedicated team of professionals and a wide interdisciplinary network of long-term contributors who are motivated by a long-term desire to improve healthcare building design quality.

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Why is it important?

As clinical and scientific practices develop and evolve, it is imperative to have an emerging strategy for healthcare facilities to develop a healthcare building design quality strategy that spans changing incoming governments. The existing healthcare design quality system has been successful in delivering a mix of regulatory strategies combining command-and-control, incentive-based, market-harnessed and design action. However, the role of standards and guidance and the recognition of key roles have been affected by a period of major structural change. There are clear opportunities now for meta- and self-regulation regimes and a mix of interventions, tools and networks that will reduce the burden of rewriting standards, acknowledge individual contributions (and so build a reputation for ongoing business development) and create a wider ownership of building design quality standards throughout the supply chain.

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