REFLECTION ON CULTURAL ATTITUDE TOWARDS HOSPITAL DESIGN AS

REFLECTED IN BUILDING CHARACTER

(REHABILITATIVE VS. PUNITIVE)

Traditionally, hospitals always convey an ambiguous and negative first

impression. People often describe hospital as unpleasant environment. It is always

associated with experience of suffering and diseases even though its main function is to

help people by providing healthcare. Maybe one of the reasons is the environment

which evokes stress such as unfamiliar signs and sounds, seeing other very ill patients,

waiting for test results and news from medical staff. This is because Hospital planning

devotes inadequate attention on the designing of its architectural appearance and

planning efficient and functional spaces for the patients and staffs. Poorly designed

facilities, including the location of technology and equipment; confusing procedures, or

improper staffing patterns; and poor safety culture are some of the problems caused by

this improper planning. To address these issues, considering the design of a hospital

facility and its effect on patient’s recovery and safety plays an important role in healing.

Physical environment has a significant impact on comfort and human

performance especially on the health of employees and patients. Hence, a rehabilitative

approach towards the design of hospital must be incorporated. As reflected in the

building character of the proposed General Hospital, Biophilic design is applied as the

main concept which creates a therapeutic environment that will enable faster recovery

of patients. Roger Ulrich, an environmental psychologist, studied hospital patients

recovering from surgery. He discovered one factor that affects recovery of patients from
their recent surgery, the view of their windows. Experiments by Roger Ulrich showed

that a simple view out to a natural scene conveyed a range of measurable health

benefits to recovering patients. In the experiment, half of the patients had windows with

a view of natural elements while the other half had a view of a blank wall. Result shows

that the patients who had natural view on their windows are likely to have stayed less

time, used fewer drugs, had fewer complications, and stay in the hospital actually cost

less due to aesthetic experience impact on these patients. Over time, many more

studies showed that the presence of natural environments, tend to make human beings

feel calmer, more at ease, more comfortable, less stressed and most beyond belief, it

actually improved their health conditions (Salingaros, 2011).

Application of this principle will also solve the issue of congestion due to

increasing number of patients. When it comes to ambulatory care, application of this

approach will enable faster turn-around of patients served. By creating a therapeutic

environment and adding elements of nature to living spaces can encourage positively

valued changes in cognition and emotion, which will impact on stress level, health and

wellness of patients. On the other hand, research shows that some buildings are now

designed with ―Natural and ―organic elements in the hopes that people who have to

work in them will feel more at ease and be more productive.

Additionally, different aspects of the built environment are considered. Through

ensuring the size, layout, and functions of the structure, it meets the diverse care needs

of patients. To achieve effectiveness, use of lighting to enable visual performance, use

of natural lighting and controlling the effects of noise is adopted. Lastly, standardizing

room layout, location of supplies and medical equipment and minimizing potential safety
threats and improving patient satisfaction is considered to achieve efficiency in

designing the facility.

Facility design can have a direct impact on patient and staff satisfaction, a

patient’s stress experience, and medical staff performance. Therefore, minimizing

environmental stressors associated with noise and inefficient room and unit layout; and

using nature, color, light, and sound to control potential stressors is significant to

provide a rehabilitative environment in a Hospital.