The session will focus on the socio-cultural aspects of light that must be accounted for with respect to quality of light, both visual and non-visual, to satisfy the needs of patients and caregivers.
Complexities of healthcare facilities include the challenge of designing for a variety of space types (newborn to geriatric; patient rooms to operating theaters; visitors’ lounges to nursing stations), casual to critical seeing tasks, satisfying concerns for safety and successful patient outcomes, all with “patient first” as the mandate.
Traditionally, the effects of light, its sensory qualities, have not been acknowledged as much as the familiar measurable quantities such as illuminance, luminance, and watts per square foot. How do we identify and define quality lighting for the specific benefit of patient wellbeing? Does lighting play a role in improving patient response? Do patients enjoy a beneficial response to daylighting?
Collaboration between design professionals and behavioral scientists is critical to our understanding of how to use light to gain potential health benefits in patient care facilities.
