Nurses’ Participation in the Design of an Intensive Care Unit: The Use of Virtual Mock-Ups

Abstract

Background: Co-design with multiple tools is useful when end users’ knowledge is important, especially when designers work with people unfamiliar with design. Many studies have highlighted the importance of nurses’ participation in design, and such participation requires the development of techniques and tools to facilitate collaboration. This article analyzes how nurses participated in designing a general intensive care unit in a walk-in virtual environment (VE) and examines how their work-related knowledge can be transferred to the design process of spaces. Method: In this action research study, the design process was conducted by using virtual mock-ups, which were evaluated by multi-occupational groups in a walk-in VE. Nurses were the largest occupational group. Their work processes were under modification, since existing multi-patient rooms were being redesigned as single-patient rooms. The design of single-patient rooms was performed in three iterative cycles in the walk-in VE. Results: The nurses could specify their requirements in the walk-in VE, and their suggestions were incorporated into the architectural design process. The nurses were satisfied with their role in the design process. Conclusion: Co-design with virtual mock-ups in walk-in VE is appropriate when designing new healthcare facilities and when the opinions of workers are important. Virtual mock-ups in walk-in VE can be used collaboratively, facilitating simultaneous feedback from multiple users. Virtual reality (VR) technology has evolved, and changes can be made rapidly and at a lower cost. Another advantage of VR is that it allows one to design larger spaces, thus providing larger layouts of facilities for evaluation.

Staff participation in design with multiple tools: Impact on design and POE results

“…If the scale had been broader, some differences in means might have been found. Spaces that were designed collaboratively-the single patient room, private bathroom, and nurse charting station-and the advances they brought were generally accepted, and there were only minor comments on these rooms (Jouppila & Tiainen, 2021). During the predesign process, valuable observations and empirical information were assembled for the design of the whole ICU, including proximities, necessary spaces, visibility, and access to assistance.…”

“…As the nurses were the largest occupational group, their satisfaction was studied separately. The nurses were satisfied with their role in the design process, they could specify their requirements in walk-in virtual environment, and their suggestions were incorporated into the architectural design (Jouppila & Tiainen, 2021). The participants expressed demand for design of larger layout to evaluate proximities and how rooms are related to each other (Tiainen & Jouppila, 2019).…”

“…Nurses and physicians are unable to read technical drawings or other documents, and they lack knowledge of design and construction processes (Keys et al, 2017;Reno et al, 2014). To support participation, multiple media of collaboration and visualization have taken 1 The Hospital District of South Ostrobothnia, Finland advantage of physical and virtual mock-ups (Jouppila & Tiainen, 2021;Lavender et al, 2020;Redden & Evans, 2014;Wingler et al, 2020;Wingler et al, 2019).…”

Design Decision Support for Healthcare Architecture: A VR-Integrated Approach for Measuring User Perception

“…However, its application specifically in healthcare environmental design, particularly in the context of stroke rehabilitation, is not widely explored. Recent research has begun to utilize VR in healthcare facility design, yet studies engaging patients, especially vulnerable groups like stroke survivors, to gain their perspectives on built environment design are limited [3,22,23]. This raises questions about VR's feasibility as a tool for such purposes.…”

Co-design baseado em experiência para ambientes físicos de saúde

“…No caso de edifícios hospitalares, a colaboração entre os diversos envolvidos no processo deve ser considerada como um fator de importância para o seu sucesso [4], cuja participação de equipes multidisciplinares de profissionais, gestores e os próprios usuários finais se mostra importante desde a sua programação arquitetônica até a sua avaliação final [5][6] [7]. A inclusão de pacientes, enfermeiros e demais profissionais de saúde no processo de projeto é de grande relevância, porém a falta de conhecimento da linguagem arquitetônica pode gerar uma lacuna de comunicação entre usuários e projetistas [8] [9].…”