D02: Not All Evidence Is Created Equal: A Discussion on Evidence Quality Assessment in Healthcare Design

A decade after Dr. Stichler wrote Weighing the Evidence for The HERD Journal, what she emphasized then is still true today—"not all evidence is created equal.” Assessing evidence quality is essential to evidence-based design practice. However, reliance on value judgment and expert opinions persists. If the field of healthcare design research is to progress we must determine and mutually apply the dimensions of quality scientific investigation, regardless of the challenges intrinsic to research in the built environment. This session will feature a discussion on assessing the quality of evidence among some of the most well-respected healthcare design researchers in practice today.