(PAOLI, PA; April 2007) -- The future of healthcare design is evident at Paoli Hospital as construction begins on its new Patient Care Pavilion that will nearly double the hospital's size when it opens in the Summer of 2009. The official groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday, April 19 and featured guest speaker Rosalyn Cama, Chair, Board of Directors, The Center for Health Design, a nonprofit research and advocacy group that promotes the use of evidence-based design to improve patient outcomes.

At approximately 281,000 square feet, the four-story Pavilion will house a modern and larger emergency department; a 14-operating room surgical suite with the latest technology for minimally invasive and computer-assisted surgeries; 126 private patient rooms; and a contemporary arrival/lobby area connected to the hospital's 737-space parking garage by a pedestrian bridge. The new building will feature a variety of evidence-based design concepts proven to enhance the overall healthcare experience.

"Evidence-based design is not just about building a new and nicer hospital, it's about creating an environment that helps patients recover faster. It looks at ways a hospital's environment can improve safety, efficiency, satisfaction and healing for both our patients and employees," said Barbara Tachovsky, President, Paoli Hospital.

According to Rosalyn Cama, evidence-based design can enhance patient safety by reducing infection risk, injuries from falls, and medical errors; eliminating environmental stressors, such as noise; and promoting healing by making hospitals more pleasant, comfortable, and supportive for both patients and staff.

One example of evidence-based design to improve infection control, safety, and healing are the Pavilion's private patient rooms. Each room will have larger windows for more natural light, reduced noise, better ventilation, handrails to the left of the bed that lead to the bathroom, and doors that open more than 90 degrees to accommodate stretchers and enhance staff visibility of the patient.

Patient rooms will also be larger than the standard size and divided into three separate zones--the patient zone, the caregiver zone, and the family zone, which includes a fold-out loveseat or chair.

"We know that family presence can help to facilitate the healing process," said Jan Nash, RN, MS, PhD, Vice President of Patient Services and expansion project leader. "Each room was designed with sufficient space to let families participate more actively in the care without feeling in the way."

Based on feedback from staff representing multiple disciplines ranging from physicians and nurses to information services and security personnel, the workplace design will also incorporate many evidence-based design principles.

"From the start, our front-line employees were involved in designing the new facility," said Nash. "Their input gave us insight on what elements could help make their jobs easier and safer for staff and their patients."
 
For example, the hospital is working to create a more "patient and staff friendly" environment by replacing the traditional central nurses' station with several "mini" nursing stations located closer to patient rooms. Each station has access to electronic patient information, charts, supplies, and medication. This arrangement reduces the distance nurses need to walk to and from patient rooms, allowing more time for patient-care and interaction with family members.
To help staff provide more efficient and effective care, the physical layout of each of the new patient rooms will be identical with supplies, equipment and furniture in the same place regardless of the unit. Standardized rooms have been shown to help reduce the incidence of errors because a clinician knows where things are upon entering any patient room.
These changes and others made to the patient care and work environment can produce very real and very positive effects. The Center for Health Design reports that patient falls declined by 75 percent as a result of nursing staff positioned closer to patients' rooms at one hospital's cardiac critical care unit. At another facility, hospital-acquired infection rates decreased 11 percent in a patient care unit featuring private rooms and specially located hand-washing sinks. Another inpatient unit recorded a 30 percent drop in medical errors by allocating more space for medication rooms, re-organizing medical supplies and reducing noise levels.

Artist's rendering of Paoli Hospital Patient Care Pavilion opening June 2009.

Media Contact:
Frieda Schmidt
610-645-3311
schmidtf@mlhs.org

Published:4-24-2007