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Healthcare Design Trends to Watch for in the New Decade

Posted by Marie Wikoff on Feb 7, 2020 in Behind the Design

So what does the future hold for the healthcare design industry? Here are the top three trends to watch for in the next 10 years.

1. The experience of receiving healthcare will be more engaging

Medical facilities of the future will engage patients more actively. No longer will patients be told to sit in a cold room and wait to be called. Healthcare environments will become more open and holistic. There will be separate areas for patients of various needs.

The physical space of a medical facility will become easier to navigate and will induce feelings of welcoming and calm. Landscapes and plants will be further infused into the design of hospitals to provide patients with a feeling of being in touch with nature and the outdoors.

2. Technology will be at the forefront

Technology will become more crucial to the healthcare industry. Technology will be used to improve all aspects of healthcare, including administration, patient care, and recovery times.

Evidence-based design is already a major part of healthcare design. To complement this methodology, data analytics will be implemented in both healthcare at large and in the design of medical facilities.

3. Healthcare will be omnipresent and streamlined

Healthcare will become more ubiquitous and omnipresent. It will become simultaneously more active in patients’ lives yet less noticeable all around. Appointments will become more frequent, but quicker and more efficient, with less wait times.

Healthcare design will play a central role in this transformation. Patients will have access to new gadgets that monitor health indicators. Designers will need to build these devices so they meld naturally with the environment.

Hospitals will play a lesser role while the individual patient will become more prominent. Telemedicine, the remote delivery of healthcare services, for example, will become more common. Designers will need to adapt themselves and innovate beyond physical spaces and into the digital realm.

The coming decade will likely continue the spectacular technological process of the proceeding twenty years, but at an accelerated rate. Medical facilities will require designs that are more fluid, open, natural, and calming. These facilities will also be seamlessly integrated into the world, which will require elegant designs. Technology will continue to be a disruptor and designers will need to accommodate these new technologies.

Marie Wikoff is the creator of Wikoff Design Studio based out of Reno, Nevada. Her expertise in healthcare design has helped modernize healthcare organizations locally, regionally, and internationally, improving patient experience and outcomes. Her credentials include Evidence-Based Design Accreditation and Certification (EDAC), American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designer (CHID), the National Council of Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) and LEED AP. Contact Marie Wikoff