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Four tips for creating spaces for the future caregivers
Since its founding in 2015, Four Point Design has specialized in interiors environments for both healthcare facilities and higher education spaces. Our work also includes the intersection of these building types: schools of nursing. With the projected shortage of Registered Nurses alongside aging Baby Boomers who need more care, these facilities are critical to the future health of our communities.
Indiana University is addressing this need with its newly renovated School of Nursing facility in Indianapolis. Opening in time for the fall 2024 semester, the project expands the size of the school to accommodate more nursing students with spaces like a new skills lab, four simulation rooms, eight debrief rooms, seven practice exam rooms, and informal learning spaces.
This project—and others—offer several keys to success when creating spaces for future caregivers.
Take direction and inspiration from real-world healthcare environments
Effective education prepares students for what they will experience in the future. The Four Point Design team has worked in a variety of healthcare environments, from complex specialty care and inpatient hospital facilities to medical office buildings and outpatient centers. As such, we understand the importance of considerations such as flexibility, thoughtful adjacencies, and durability. This experience allows us to create realistic simulated environments for hands-on learning, whether for projects like the Dwyer Healthcare Simulation Center at Indiana University South Bend or immersive spaces like Falkbuilt’s HIVE.
Design environments that reflect how people learn and collaborate
Educational environments call for a variety of spaces to fit the task at hand and to respond to the different ways people learn and study. Both healthcare and education spaces need interior design approaches that accommodate multiple functions while providing flexibility for future changes in programming and usage.
Create branded spaces that attract students and celebrate the impact of nursing
Caregivers play a critical role in our society, and an inviting environment can both celebrate that impact and fuel schools’ retention efforts. Through our school of nursing projects, we incorporate thoughtful touches such as graphics that pay homage to the rich history of nursing schools and “Instagrammable” backdrops for graduation photos—elements that foster a sense of pride among students.
Promote the profession
This last tip is a bit of a different take on creating spaces… how are we creating an environment that celebrates and invites caregivers into the industry overall? Whether you work in a healthcare setting, design spaces for it, or have been a family member or patient seeking care, each of us plays a role in—and benefits from—our healthcare systems and their team members. As such, we can all play a role in its future success by sharing our stories of caregivers who inspire us.
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