Architectural Psychology and Biophilia in Healthcare FINAL - Flipbook - Page 7
alleviate depression after approximately two weeks of treatment, while anti‐
depressant drugs have a delayed onset of at least four to six weeks (Martiny, 2004).
Patients hospitalized for severe depression assigned to sunny rooms had substantially
shorter stays than those assigned to rooms always in shade. Natural light exposure has
also been found to help in reducing pain by increasing levels of serotonin, a
neurotransmitter known to inhibit pain pathways. When it comes to artificial light, one
study showed that people exposed to cooler colored light reported feeling happier and
more alert than when exposed to light in the warmer color temperatures.
For day‐shift healthcare staff, morning daylight exposure is the primary environmental
stimulus for regulating circadian rhythms and thereby fostering daytime alertness,
cognitive performance, and nighttime sleep quality. Designers can help staff regulate
body clock rhythms by providing windows in healthcare workspaces and breakrooms
or installing tunable LED lighting which can be controlled to mimic the color and
intensity of the natural daylight cycle.
Conclusion:
Architectural psychology provides a range of information that is becoming more and
more useful to designers as new data continues to emerge from the field. For designers,
a basic understanding of the concepts as they relate to the healthcare design is very
much warranted. In particular, the restorative properties of biophilia are significant. Of
course, the priority and resources allocated to biophilic healthcare design will
ultimately be influenced by cost and the extent to which further research demonstrates
that biophilic measures improve outcomes. The fact that many newly constructed
healthcare facilities worldwide have taken the lead on this approach indicates that
optimism is warranted, and awareness is crucial.
If you have any questions about this article or about applying biophilia principles to your next
project, please email Mike Dobereiner at mdobereiner@hymanhayes.com or call him at
518.452.3470 ext. 207.
Massry Family Children’s Emergency Center
Albany Medical Center
Design by HHA
Albany Medical Center
Design by HHA
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