Interactive Diagram Guides Key Design Strategies for Behavioral Health Inpatient Rooms

Two goals are often at the center of care models for behavioral and mental health: safety and healing. Most recently, the design of inpatient rooms for behavioral and mental health has focused on safety for both patients and staff through checklists for ligature-resistance.

While safety is always a driver, there should also be a strong emphasis on healing for this specialized care. Generally, the evidence base for design is supportive of a deinstitutionalized design aesthetic that provides a sense of being both welcoming and safe.

The Center for Health Design has released another web-based, annotated diagram, focusing on the behavioral and mental health inpatient room. Healing and safety design strategies are drawn from behavioral health-focused design interventions to inform an inpatient room that can improve outcomes for all. View the new tool at healthdesign.org.