Imagine if all healthcare facilities remained the same throughout the decades. As patient standards are improving in terms of the staff that hospitals and medical offices employ, and technology is becoming more advanced in the equipment used, it’s almost a no brainer that the patient experience should also be catered to a more advanced decade.

IKM, Inc. has been a leader in architecture, planning, and interior design services for more than 100 years. Their mission has always been to create innovative and informed architectural solutions that positively impact the world through leadership in understanding, exploration, and decision making, in healthcare, education, science & technology, civic & culture, and the workplace. Because of this, they have been some of the brains behind improving the patient experience.

Sparq worked alongside IKM’s marketing expert, CEO, and talented architects to create a 3-part series of video showcasing “The Evolution of Healthcare Design.”

“The Intricacies of OR Design”

The first video, “The Intricacies of OR Design” highlighted how IKM’s architects were able to identify problem areas in the operating room (the OR), and how they utilized that information to design new, state-of-the-art rooms. By making OR supplies easier to access, strategic boom placement, creating defined anesthesia and equipment zones, IKM was able to create efficiencies in the hospital and create quicker turn over between patient cases.

Watch online.


“Advancing Patient Wellness Through the Physical Environment”

The second video, “Advancing Patient Wellness through the Physical Environment” is centered around improving patient wellness through design. IKM believes that their job is to support the healing process by empowering inpatients with a sense of control and safety during their hospital stay. The newly designed rooms offer patients the opportunity to control lighting and temperature, order meals, watch instructional videos, confirm staff names and responsibilities, and see their daily schedule. These rooms also are developed with distinct zones for family, patient and staff. Rooms are given access to abundant natural light and vistas in response to studies that have shown patients whose rooms overlooked fields or landscapes had a shorter length of stay than patients whose rooms may have had views of other buildings or roofs. Since patients are spending most of their time healing in their rooms, it’s more important than ever to make sure they are comfortable while also receiving adequate support.

Watch online.


“Redefining Medical Workspaces”

The third and final video, “Redefining Medical Workspaces,” focused on a redesign of medical office buildings and practices. Physician practices are shaping into “medical co-working spaces” that allow practitioners to share their workspace, so-to-speak. Doctors can choose when to use the space for their exam hours while other professionals use the space for their own, those maximizing the utilization of this expensive physical resource. The exam rooms themselves are set up to provide comfort to the patient, and the waiting rooms allow the person being seen the ability to wait in a warm and inviting atmosphere with multiple types of seating options available as opposed to the standard bus station like scenario.

Watch online.

Follow IKM, Inc. on social media and be on the lookout for more great Sparq content to come.

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