Emergency Department Design Trends

Emergency Department Design Trends - New Article to be Published

Well known healthcare architecture firm Bernstein & Associates, Architects is pleased to announce the publication of an article on current emergency department (ED) design trends. Topics discussed include:

- Trends in ED patient type and volume.
- How to start the ED design process.
- The impact of built-in design flexibility on ED longevity and quality of care.
- Different types of ED layouts.
- Advantages of “linear” and “pod” ED layouts.
- Prerequisites for a successful pod layout.
- Trends towards standardized exam rooms and “flexible-use planning”.
- Trends away from departmentally dedicated spaces within the ED.
- How to design and equip a flexible-use exam room.
- Specialties which need individualized spaces.
- Pre-admission rooms and pre-release observation units.
- The basics of Lean design guidelines.
- How to perform a pre-design Lean analysis.
- Advantages of optimizing workflow as the first step of the design process.
- Input required for a successful Lean analysis.
- The importance of minimizing cross-traffic and walking distances.
- The importance of promoting patient calm and comfort.
- The balance between visibility and patient privacy.
- Lighting considerations.
- Shielding of entryways for ambulance patients.
- Designing family and visitor-friendly exam rooms.
- The importance of proper technology selection.
- Self-service kiosks for registration and other purposes.
- The advantages of wireless PC technology linked to the ED network.
- The use of RFID tags and scanners to track patients and instantly update records.
- Importance of designing for possible disaster capacity scenarios.
- Inclusion of multiple entry portals for disaster situations.
- Isolated entrances for contaminated patients.
- Independent power and water systems.
- Engineering and support “modules” to enable more effective quarantine.
- Requirement for air-isolation rooms.
- Using waiting and parking spaces as care spaces in dire situations.

© 2010 by William N. Bernstein, LEED®AP, AIA and Manu Venkat. Well known healthcare architect Mr. Bernstein is a principal of healthcare architecture firm Bernstein & Associates, Architects (www.bernarch.com), which is focused on smart healthcare renovations for healthcare clients, with offices in New York, Hartford, Princeton and Los Angeles. The firm is known for innovative healthcare planning, healthcare design, healthcare architecture and healthcare interior design. Additional ways to follow the healthcare design philosophy and healthcare design news, is through the firm’s healthcare design blog at www.bernarch.blogspot.com, as well as the firm’s healthcare design Twitter account at www.twitter.com/hospitals

For more information about emergency department design, emergency department planning, emergency department architecture, and emergency department interior design, go to http://www.bernarch.com/Healthcare-EmergencyDepartment.htm. Or please contact:

Healthcare Architects in New York (Headquarters)
Bernstein & Associates, Architects 59 West 19th St, New York, NY 10011
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Architects in Hartford
Bernstein & Associates, Architects 100 Pearl St. - 14th Floor, Hartford, CT 06103
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Architects in Princeton
Bernstein & Associates, Architects 103 Carnegie Center, Suite 300, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Architects in Los Angeles
Bernstein & Associates, Architects 1405 Woodruff Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90024
Email: info@bernarch.com

Design of an Electronic Medical Records Department

Electronic Medical Records Department Design by Bernstein & Associates Architects

Healthcare Design News Release

For Immediate Release (08/01/10)

Design of a new electronic medical records department is a new project underway at healthcare architecture firm Bernstein & Associates, Architects.

Electronic medical records are of course the future of healthcare record keeping, and the subject of numerous government programs supporting this initiative. Although much attention has been paid to the software component of EMR, less has been paid to the question of ow to design an electronic medical records department.

Healthcare architecture firm Bernstein & Associates Architects is approaching the design of this new electronic medical department with one eye to current EMR department needs, and another eye to the future of EMR department needs. Amongst the areas the firm is focusing on are: flexibility, future growth, future changes in this area, security, ergonomics, and privacy vs. collaborative active amongst the EMR department employees.

EMR design consulting services provided by Bernstein & Associates, Architects (www.bernarch.com) will address best practices in healthcare design, state of the art healthcare technology utilization, patient safety in a healthcare facility, and maximizing the efficiency of a state of the art outpatient healthcare practice.

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About Bernstein & Associates, Architects:

Founded in 1990, this healthcare architecture firm specializes in healthcare interior design, healthcare design, healthcare design, healthcare architecture, medical office design, medical office interior design, healthcare interior design, medical interior design and health care interior design.

The firm is run by William N. Bernstein, LEED®AP, AIA, a well-known healthcare architect. The firm is highly experienced with state-of-the-art healthcare design.

With healthcare design offices in New York, Hartford, Princeton and Los Angeles, Bernstein & Associates, Architects is known for innovative healthcare planning, healthcare design, healthcare architecture and healthcare interior design.

Additional ways to follow the firm's healthcare design philosophy and healthcare design news, is through the firm’s healthcare design blog at www.bernarch.blogspot.com , as well as the firm’s healthcare design Twitter account at www.twitter.com/hospitals
For more information about healthcare planning, healthcare architecture, and healthcare interior design, please contact:

Healthcare Design in New York (Headquarters):

Bernstein & Associates, Architects
59 West 19th St. - 6th Floor
New York, NY 10011
T: 212-463-8200
F: 212-463-9898
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Design in Connecticut:

Bernstein & Associates, Architects
100 Pearl St. - 14th Floor
Hartford, CT 06103
T: 860-616-2200
F: 860-616-0018
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Design in New Jersey:

Bernstein & Associates, Architects
103 Carnegie Center, Suite 300
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
T: 609-309-7005
F: 609-309-7006
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Design in California:

Bernstein & Associates, Architects
1405 Woodruff Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90024
T: 213-330-0340
F: 213-330-0450
Email: info@bernarch.com

Healthcare Design in the Developing World – New Article to be Published

Bernstein & Associates, Architects is pleased to announce the upcoming publication of an article on healthcare design in the developing world. The article will be published in the Healthcare Newspaper.

The article discusses the following points, as they apply in a developing world setting:

-The role healthcares play in medical education
-The unique organization and catchment areas of district healthcare facilities and clinics
-The importance of planning for future growth
-Financial constraints which can hinder healthcare construction and operation
-Why sustainability must be prioritized
-Factors that can affect healthcare accessibility
-The advantages of utilizing passive air conditioning solutions
-How to maximize interior ventilation
-The impact of building shape on ventilation
-Designs used to maximize interior floor space as well as ventilation and sunlight penetration
-The impact of window placement on ventilation
-Using building orientation to change exposure conditions in extreme environments, thereby regulating temperature
-The use of greenery to direct airflow into a structure, improving ventilation
-The use of landscaping to regulate temperature and create a more stable microenvironment surrounding the healthcare facility
-The use of secondary structures such as awnings to regulate temperature
-Room occupancy considerations
-The advantages and disadvantages of using an open ward design as opposed to one consisting of many smaller rooms
-How to organize healthcare departments to allow for non-disruptive growth of the structure
-How the use of repetitive, undifferentiated blocks can promote flexibility
-Advantages of using local labor and construction materials
-Energy efficiency strategies for construction and building maintenance
-The impact of high and low-tech methods on sustainability
-Energy generation and water collection methods
-Considerations pertaining to disaster preparedness
-How architectural style can affect patient comfort and the effectiveness of care
-Past projects which have used the aforementioned design strategies to great effect

The article was written by William N. Bernstein, LEED®AP, AIA and Manu Venkat. Well known healthcare architect Mr. Bernstein is a principal of Bernstein & Associates, Architects (www.bernarch.com), which is focused on smart architecture for healthcare clients, with offices in New York, Hartford, Princeton and Los Angeles. The firm is known for innovative healthcare planning, healthcare design, healthcare architecture and healthcare interior design. Additional ways to follow the healthcare design philosophy and healthcare design news, is through the firm’s healthcare design blog at www.bernarch.blogspot.com, as well as the firm’s healthcare design Twitter account at www.twitter.com/Hospitals

About Bernstein & Associates, Architects: Founded in 1990, this company is an award-winning architectural firm specialized in Healthcare design and laboratory design. The firm takes pride in providing the highest level of Healthcare design work, with additional expertise in sustainable Healthcare facilities, energy saving measures for Healthcares, cost reduction strategies for Healthcares, Healthcare safety and patient safety.

For more information about Healthcare planning, Healthcare architecture, and Healthcare interior design, please contact Bernstein & Associates, Architects as follows:

New York (Headquarters):
Bernstein & Associates, Architects
59 West 19th St. - 6th Floor
New York, NY 10011
T: 212-463-8200
F: 212-463-9898
Email: info@bernarch.com

Hartford:
Bernstein & Associates, Architects
100 Pearl St. - 14th Floor
Hartford, CT 06103
T: 860-616-2200
F: 860-616-0018
Email: info@bernarch.com

Princeton:
Bernstein & Associates, Architects
103 Carnegie Center, Suite 300
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
T: 609-309-7005
F: 609-309-7006
Email: info@bernarch.com

Los Angeles:
Bernstein & Associates, Architects
1405 Woodruff Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90024
T: 213-330-0340
F: 213-330-0450
Email: info@bernarch.com