Resort-like hospitals in the future

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., Jan. 22 (UPI) -- Lean manufacturing -- with a focus on minimizing waste -- both in terms of cost and in the way space is allocated may result in resort-like U.S. hospitals.

In years to come, hospitals and other healthcare facilities will look more like hotels or resorts and less like the institutional, often inconveniently designed buildings many think of today, says Gregory Lasker, a Purdue University expert on building construction management.

"Hospitals used to be stiff environments, but in the last decade or so, that has all changed," says Lasker. "Today consumers, as well as healthcare professionals, are more informed and interested in how a holistic environment promotes healing."

Hospitals of the future will look more like the Indianapolis-area's Clarian North Medical Center, which features private rooms; dedicated pavilions for women, children and specialty surgery; an attached medical office building; comfortable waiting-room chairs similar to what might be found in a residence; and greenery and a glass-covered atrium, much like a shopping mall.

"The changes have come about because there has been a big push toward what is known as evidence-based design," Lasker says.

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