Sophia Bunz
she/her
BA
KD
At the beginning of the project, it was important to take a close look at the clinic’s corridors. It is striking how bare, cold, and seemingly endless these long corridors feel. Which floor am I actually on? Everything looks the same here! Some patients clearly show that they don’t know where they’re supposed to go. White walls and doors as far as the eye can see. From the very beginning of my work, it was important to me to understand how older people perceive their environment, which factors influence a space and its effect on us, and how essential it is for people to be able to orient themselves within a place. It has long been known that our environment and the way we navigate it have a direct impact on our well-being. Shouldn’t it therefore have been a top priority for a long time to design spaces accordingly? The design is primarily, but not exclusively, guided by the needs of patients. However, staff spend most of their time in the clinic. A corridor is much more than just a space for getting from A to B. It is a place to spend time, a workspace, a space for orientation within the building, a place for social interaction, and a space for movement.
Orientation and Well-being in Hospital Corridors
A Design Concept for the Rehabilitation Clinic Maria Frieden in Telgte
The design of our environment influences how we feel and behave as human beings. This plays a particularly important role in places where we stay for an extended period of time in order to recover from an illness or a surgical procedure. The geriatric and neurological rehabilitation clinic Maria Frieden in Telgte is one of these places. The stay of elderly patients is often characterized by physical and, in many cases, additional cognitive impairments. For this very reason, an environment that provides orientation and conveys a sense of safety is of great importance. While hospital corridors are among the most frequently used spaces and therefore have a significant impact on all users, the corridors of the Maria Frieden clinic are described by staff as cold, monotonous, lacking atmosphere, and insufficiently signposted. I therefore explored the question of how the design of corridor spaces can positively influence orientation, safety, and the well-being of patients, staff, and visitors. A central aspect of this was the change in sensory perception with age. My design demonstrates possibilities for how even small design interventions can influence the environment and positively contribute to how people feel and behave within the clinic.
Begleitet durch Prof. Claudia Grönebaum und Prof. Daniel Braun
