AfH at IHEEM 8-9 October 2013
AfH had another active year at the IHEEM conference. We…
- led 2 Conference Sessions on Design
- staged a stunning exhibition of Members projects
- presented 3 design awards
- gave an overview of this year’s activities
- and contributed to the panel discussion on strategic priorities
MODERN ENVIRONMENTS FOR MENTAL HEALTH AND DEMENTIA SERVICES
Whilst Teva and Stephanie both addressed the design of modern environments for mental health and dementia services, they each approached the subject from different starting points. Teva explained his study at Springfield Hospital drawing conclusions from a systematic research study that applied data collected about incidents to the layout of the physical environment; Stephanie’s insights came from a more personal engagement with the development of a care home, and drew attention to the impact of the personal care model on the design of private and shared spaces, the nature of the gardens and the importance of staff morale and visitors wellbeing.
Teva’s study questioned how risk is defined and mitigated on mental health wards. An analysis of ten years of data compiled at the Springfield University Hospital in South London highlighted environmental factors that influence the type and frequency of incidents that occur on various types of mental health wards.
- clinical and societal factors that influence our approach to risk
- an examination of where, when and why incidents occur on wards
- evidence-based, generative layouts for mental health wards
- a comparison of DH guidance to the incident profile on mental health wards
He suggested layouts that optimise safety, economy and quality of design.
Stephanie explained how at Nightingale House in Clapham, they designed and opened a new build 40 place unit with for people with dementia and are currently refurbishing a 28 bed unit within an existing 70’s building; they entirely remodelled the provision of dementia care adopting a Personal Centred Care model. She described how this impacted on the caring environment and concluded that
- The whole team should abandon generalisations and spend time with the service users
- Choice and flexibility are key aspects of care and the environment
- Design must address for both staff and residents’ experience
As she pointed out, there is no ‘they’ in dementia care; and the personalised reminiscent boxes for each patient are more to help staff to recognise the whole person and their life’s achievements more than an aide-memoir for patients.
The discussion focused on the need for a more open- ended Briefing System than for prescriptive guidelines; the need to celebrate delight in design as well as functionality; and the importance of developing a more sophisticated awareness of how design can mitigate the risk factors.
Mental Health Inpatient Services – Design by Evidence by Teva Hess, CF Muller
Dementia In Clapham by Stepanie Brada, Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd
– View more IHEEM presentations at Architects for Health Presentations
– To see the speakers’ CV’s
HOW CAN WE DO MORE WITH LESS? A strategic proposition for planning and designing for health
John Cooper and Christopher Shaw presented a historical analysis of the state of the estate with a list of 10 things that are wrong with the NHS followed by 10 things that must be done. They pointed out that there is too much estate that performs abysmally in terms of energy and carbon emissions; funding is often inadequate and dysfunctional with strategic planning being reactive rather than strategic. The immense investment in stakeholder engagement is failing to deliver Change management.
Amongst other things they called for the development of an Infrastructure plan with a strong vision for the future; the need to abandon the current cumbersome procurement processes alongside a streamlined Capital Investment Manual; and a longer term 20-50 vision for the future estate.
How can we do more with less? John Cooper, Director of JCA and Chair of Architects for Health and Christopher Shaw, Director of Medical Architecture and AfH Executive
– View more IHEEM presentations at Architects for Health Presentations
– To see the speakers’ CV’s
