Operating Room Prototype / Architecture & Patient Care

Contributing to a federally funded four-year research effort entitled Realizing Improved Patient Care through Human-Centered Design (RIPCHD.OR), Clemson University’s Architecture + Health Program designed an operating room prototype that serves as a platform for safer and more operationally efficient ambulatory surgery.

Contributing to a federally funded four-year research effort entitled Realizing Improved Patient Care through Human-Centered Design (RIPCHD.OR), Clemson University’s Architecture + Health Program designed an operating room prototype that serves as a platform for safer and more operationally efficient ambulatory surgery.

Clemson’s architecture students connected with faculty members, clinicians, consultants, practicing architects, and industry collaborators, challenging the team to examine conventional healthcare construction methods and conceive a new approach.

The first year of the effort involved research and observation, followed by design, initial simulation testing, refinement, and mock-up fabrication in the second and third years. The fourth year, which is currently in progress, involves clinical simulation testing, the dissemination of results, and the implementation of evidence-based design features into two ambulatory surgery centers.

By incorporating supplementary creative and scientific disciplines to optimize safety, usability, comfort, and control for all users, including healthcare providers, the interdisciplinary project delivers an evidence-based approach to advance the design of operating rooms.