Designing Health Care Office Space: Helping Patients Feel Relaxed

Health care offices have come to prioritize various amenities depending on the diagnostic and treatment objectives the office specializes in. Regardless of practice type, a health care office space can make patients feel relaxed and at ease.

We've created a simple list of ways to design health care offices that help patients feel relaxed.

Create a Soothing Environment

When patients enter a health care office, they are already overwhelmed with their own or their loved one's ailments. Finding a way to soothe their worries from the moment they walk through the doors will only help their health care experience.

Color, Art, and Music

The combination and quality of color in medical offices can have a calming, soothing, and even a healing effect on the ill. Patients usually prefer lighter and softer natural tones for the rooms they're treated in. Cohesiveness between colors gives visitors a sense of togetherness and tranquility.

Nature designs comprised of earthy forms have always had a powerful impact on patients' troubled minds. Photos of outdoor environments send a message of peace and hidden strength.

While many health care offices may host a TV or two, simple background music can profoundly affect patients and staff.

Natural Light

Exposure to sunlight helps the brain release serotonin, which is a hormone that boosts mood and makes one feel focused. This is why many medical offices aim to let in as much natural light as possible so that patients and employees can feel at ease.

Additionally, natural light keeps employees alert and connected to the outside world while treating patients. Indeed, there needs to be a carefully thought out balance between daylight and darker rooms providing privacy in exam rooms.

Functionality

Added benefits of functionality may include sound reduction in the ceiling and walls. This sound reduction can neutralize the overwhelming pressure of the outside world patients cope with every day, genuinely sending patients into a calming environment.

The furniture purchased should be easily cleaned and disinfected, eco-friendly, and give a sense of pride to the health care practice.

Keep in Mind the Practice Specialty

While a health care practice can be subdued and serene, many practices need to cater to specific patient needs and wants. Waiting rooms should be designed with spaces to house wheelchairs, reception desks should have various counter heights, and bathrooms should have lower sinks for little kids to wash their hands.

While it may be practical to design a health care space with certain amenities, choosing a theme should be up to the doctors practicing in the offices. For example, a pediatrician's office may have a large fish tank, the doctor may paint the walls bright colors, and the waiting area may include coloring pages and books. Patients want to feel as if they belong in the practice; even little patients want to feel accepted and well cared for.

Unique elements such as a water feature, a little free library, or charging ports can also make patients feel at ease coming into the health care office. Cater your health care practice to what your patients need the most.

Build Trust

There are many ways health care providers can build trust with patients. Clean waiting rooms and exam rooms, friendly staff, ease of appointment bookings, etc., all factor into building trust. Empowering patients to access their medical records at home also allows for greater transparency and builds trust. Being able to email a doctor or look up a prescription can make the woes of health care manageable.

Final Thoughts

Creating a health care office space that is inviting, functional, and satisfying to all parties can be challenging. It may take many tries to rearrange the waiting room or find the exact paint color to put a smile on a sick kid's face, but with patience and careful planning, you can design a health care space that helps patients feel relaxed and at ease.