Courtesy of
Callison Architects
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| Kerrie
Cardon, RN, worked in med/surg at a Bozeman, Mont.,
hospital before becoming a health care architect.
She now works at Seattle-based Callison Architects.
Cardon is part of a team that is creating the new
and innovative units for nurses in several other
facilities in the Northwest. |
When Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Milwaukee
decided to tackle the nursing shortage by hiring 100
RNs in 100 days, a big selling point was the innovative
design of its new North Tower that took into account
the physical and psychological needs of caregivers.
Creating a nurse-friendly environment with warm lighting,
easy access to supplies and mobile charting stations
was a job perfectly suited to Karen Jones, RN, a health
care design specialist at the architectural firm of
Hammel, Green & Abrahamson Inc. She developed features
that helped attract and retain RNs at the five-story,
118-bed addition to the teaching hospital.
"A lot of focus has been centered on spaces that
promote patient wellness and satisfaction, which is
necessary, but we also have to look for ways to retain
the nursing population within hospitals," said
Jones, who earned her nursing degree from the College
of San Mateo (Calif.) and spent more than 10 years in
clinical bedside positions in hospitals before going
into design.
Part of her role as a designer is to find out what
nurses need and then improve operational processes.
She's also expected to be a patient and hospital staff
advocate for the design firm. "I'm in a position
to advocate for what nurses need in work processes and
to look critically at their wish list," Jones said.
For the North Tower project that opened in September,
a patient room was converted into the nurse work area
to give nurses access to a window for daylight. The
space was designed as a quiet place for nurses to retreat
and regenerate.
Jones said mobile supply stations are used so nurses
can decide where to place them for the greatest efficiency
on their shifts, which run 10 hours for seven straight
days, followed by seven days off. Since a new model
of caregiving is emerging with electronic bedside charts
and summoning technology, there is no longer a need
for a centralized station for monitoring patients.
The campaign to hire 100 nurses was successful and
the vacancy rate at the 338-bed tertiary facility is
less than 5 percent, according to John Balzar, vice
president of facility planning and development. "Part
of the effort involved letting the nurses tour the new
North Tower to see what the work environment would be
like."
Other hospitals across the nation are experimenting
with similar approaches to making spaces appealing,
comfortable and soothing for patients and staff. Some
of these, such as Froedtert Hospital, are associated
with the Pebble Project, whose purpose is to create
a ripple effect in the health care community by providing
researched and documented examples of projects that
have created life-enhancing environments for patients,
families and staff.
Creating a total healing environment is a long-term
design goal of many facilities, including the 181-bed
St. Charles Medical Center in central Oregon, where
patients can relax by a cozy lava rock fireplace, enjoy
a piano concert in the lobby and even fish for bass
in a well-stocked pool.
The emphasis isn't only on patient comfort, it's also
on creating a warm, efficient environment for nurses
that reduces stress and replenishes their spirit, according
to Kerrie Cardon, RN, who said a new attitude has developed
in the design of 21st century acute care units.
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