The Role of the Physical Environment in the Hospital of the 21st Century: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity
2004
The Center for Health Design
Report
Author(s): Ulrich, R. S., Zimring, C., Quan, X., Joseph, A., Choudhary, R.
Added December 2022
Lean design of the pediatric intensive care unit patient room for efficient and safe care delivery
2022
HERD: Health Environments Research & Design Journal
Journal Article
Issue 4
Volume 15
Pages 369-390
Author(s): Lu, Y., Bishop, N. B., Zadeh, R. S.
Pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) are often operated by specially trained registered nurses (RNs). Due to the high stress and sensitivity of these environments, optimizing RN workflows and safety protocols is important.
Added August 2022
The role of the built environment and private rooms for reducing central line-associated bloodstream infections
2018
PLOS ONE
Journal Article
Issue 7
Volume 13
Pages 12
Author(s): O’Neill, L., Park, S.-H., Rosinia, F.
Private patient rooms in hospital environments are widely considered a helpful defense against healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). However, the ways in which private rooms might help mitigate specific kinds of HAIs, such as central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), remain unclear and relatively unexplored.
Added August 2018
Impact of Neonatal Intensive Care Bed Configuration on Rates of Late-Onset Bacterial Sepsis and Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Colonization
2015
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology
Journal Article
Issue 10
Volume 36
Pages 1173-1182
Author(s): Julian, S., Burnham, C.-A., Sellenriek, P., Shannon, W. D., Hamvas, A., Tarr, P. I., Warner, B. B.
Late-onset infections are a continuing issue, causing notable levels of morbidity and mortality in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), while also increasing the length of patient stay and financial burdens on healthcare institutions. Few previous studies have tested the hypothesis that infants in single-patient rooms have a lower risk of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization, late-onset sepsis, and death.
Added June 2016
Impact of the Physical Environment of Residential Health, Care, and Support Facilities (RHCSF) on Staff and Residents A Systematic Review of the Literature
2015
Environment and Behavior
Journal Article
Issue 10
Volume 48
Pages 1203-1241
Author(s): Joseph, A., Choi, Y.-S., Quan, X.
Strategies related to the design of the built environment should be considered within the context of the culture of the organization and the resident population. This study of the physical environment of residential health, care, and support facilities addresses the range of settings and population, where other studies have been lacking. The literature review strongly suggests that the built environment is an important component of care provided in residential care settings.
Added May 2016
Nurses’ Perception of Single-Occupancy Versus Multioccupancy Rooms in Acute Care Environments: An Exploratory Comparative Assessment
2006
Applied Nursing Research
Journal Article
Issue 3
Volume 19
Pages 118-125
Author(s): Chaudhury, H., Mahmood, A., Valente, M.
As people are living longer and the baby boomers age, the demand for hospital beds will increase. As new facilities are built to handle this influx of patients, the challenge for hospital designers and administrators is to design patient rooms that promote therapeutic goals, foster positive patient outcomes, and function as intensive care rooms. Recent research suggests that single-occupancy rooms are more suitable for infection control and patient care than multioccupancy rooms. However, no research has been done about nursing staff members’ perception of single-occupancy and multioccupancy patient rooms in acute care settings as it relates to patient care.
Added April 2014
Control of pseudomonas aeruginosa infections in burned patients
1992
Surgical Research Communications
Journal Article
Issue 1
Volume 12
Pages 61-67
Author(s): McManus, A.T., Mason, A.D.J., McManus, W.F., Pruitt, B.A.J.
Invasive burn wound sepsis with Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major concern in burn patient care settings. It is difficult to treat and may cause high mortality among patients with extensive burn wounds. Therefore, one primary goal of burn care is to prevent colonization and infection of P. aeruginosa. Patient colonization refers to the isolation of the targeted pathogen (organism) from the patient (e.g., sputum, wound surface, urine, and stool).
Added October 2012
Role of ventilation in airborne transmission of infectious agents in the built environment - a multidisciplinary systematic review
2007
Indoor Air
Journal Article
Issue 1
Volume 17
Pages 2-18
Author(s): Li, Y., Leung, G.M., Tang, J.W., Yang, X., Chao, C.Y., Lin, J.Z., Lu, J.W., Nielsen, P.V., Niu, J., Qian, H., Sleigh, A.C., Su, H.J., Sundell, J., Wong, T.W., Yuen, P.L.
The early 2000s saw the surfacing of severe acute respiratory syndrome or SARS, the large-scale return of tuberculosis or TB, an influenza pandemic, and the intentional dispersion of diseases like anthrax – all of which are highly infectious airborne diseases. Authors noted that densely populated urban areas and offices, schools, other buildings, aircraft, and other mass transport vehicles (where people spent most of their time) were ideal for the transmission of SARS.
Added October 2012
Do isolation rooms reduce the rate of nosocomial infections in the pediatric intensive care unit?
2002
Journal of Critical Care
Journal Article
Issue 3
Volume 17
Pages 176-180
Author(s): Ben-Abraham, R., Keller, N., Szold, O., Vardi, A., Weinberg, M., Barzilay, Z., Paret, G.
To determine the effect of isolation rooms on the direct spread of nosocomial infections (NIs) owing to cross-colonization in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
Added August 2012
The Role of Physical Proximity in Nosocomial Diarrhea
2000
Clinical Infectious Diseases
Journal Article
Issue 3
Volume 31
Pages 717-722
Author(s): Chang, V. T., Nelson, K.
To examine physical proximity as a risk factor for the nosocomial acquisition of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD) and of antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD), we assessed a retrospective cohort of 2859 patients admitted to a community hospital from 1 March 1987 through 31 August 1987. Of these patients, 68 had nosocomial CDAD and 54 had nosocomial AAD. In multivariate analysis,...
Added August 2012
