GS&P’s Patient Visibility Study Published by Journal of Environmental Psychology

NASHVILLE, Tenn.  – Gresham, Smith and Partners recently published a peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Environmental Psychology on patient visibility, co-authored by a research team that includes Senior Interior Designers Beth Hiltonen, IIDA, LEED AP and Elisa Worden, IIDA, EDAC, LEED AP.

The article, titled “To See or Not to See: Investigating the Links between Patient Visibility and Potential Moderators Affecting the Patient Experience,” presents the findings of a study by GS&P on the impact of relocating beds within patient rooms at Florida Hospital Waterman.

The study found that giving patients greater privacy by making the heads of their beds less visible from outside the room resulted in more frequent nurse visits, fewer patient complaints about noise and an increase in patient satisfaction scores. Although not statistically significant, the study also found an increase in fall rates in the lower-visibility rooms.

The article will appear in print in the Journal’s September 2016 issue.

Additional contributors to the article include Sheila Bosch, Ph.D., EDAC, LEED AP, assistant professor of interior design at the University of Florida and GS&P’s former director of research; Michael Apple, EDAC, LEED AP, independent consultant for the duration of the study; Yi Lu, Ph.D., visiting assistant professor at City University of Hong Kong; Upali Nanda, Ph.D., EDAC, research consultant at the Center for Health Design for the duration of the study and Daejin Kim, a doctoral candidate at the University of Florida.