5 Important Design Considerations for Nurse Stations
The nurse's station is vital because it plays a supportive role in all patient care. The space demands organization and functionality to help promote the overall well-being of nurses and other hospital staff, patients, families, and visitors.
Offering an ergonomic space that helps foster optimal conditions simply cannot be understated, so here are some important design considerations when building nurse stations.
1. Organization
It is no secret that there can be a certain level of chaos regarding nurses' stations, so the primary focus of custom healthcare cabinets should be on functionality. Ease of use can offer benefits that aesthetics cannot match!
Good design considers the location and maximizes travel time, so nurses must use the least amount of effort to gather information.
In addition, having a space that allows a clear view of the patient rooms from the nurses' designated work areas is also beneficial.
2. Control
Another aspect to consider is creating a space that can support changes, which there is no shortage of in the healthcare industry. The nursing station is busy and needs to create an organized and functional space for administrative duties like processing documents, handling calls, chart processing, medication preparation, and patient monitoring.
Modular casework can accommodate computer equipment, portable monitors to keep an eye on patients, and other clinical technology to help manage supplies and deliver applications to support patients' health.
In addition, it can be beneficial to have a more centralized workstation that offers multiple medical casework layouts.
3. Flexibility
An optimal space will help allow for various kinds of work-related activities. This can include anything from a place to prepare medications to shift changes and will foster a workspace to accommodate this.
Having greater flexibility also helps assert control and enhance comfort with streamlined ergonomic designs so the nurses can stay calm, comfortable, and focused on the tasks at hand.
4. Space for Everyone
The workspace needs an area to display information and utilize space to change that information if required. The nurse's station must also accommodate the area's different activities to help improve workflow.
Various examples of activities could be communication between patients and staff or traveling from supply rooms and back to the main site.
5. Cognitive Load Reduction
Being a nurse is stressful enough, and when faced with an overload of information, this can lead to fatigue, confusion, and disorganization. The nurse's station needs to support multiple types of information but in a strategic way.
From reducing clutter and noise to appropriate lighting and maintaining patients' privacy, the workspace needs to be built to help reduce information overload as much as possible.
R.C. Smith: Improving Workspaces Since 1965
Because the nurse's workstation is such an integral part of the healthcare facility, it is essential to ensure that the space is utilized to create a more effortless flow of communication. In addition, it also needs to hold space for documentation and storing any pertinent information.
R.C. Smith understands that the nurse's station is an integral part of the facility, and with the right design, you can create a functional space that will support the employees and the patients. We have been in business since 1965, with a focus on craftsmanship and dedication to our client's vision. We specialize in multiple designs, from modular casework to kiosks, and would love to help you design your next project.
We offer a free consultation, so if you have any questions or want to make an appointment contact us or give us a call at 800-747-7648.