Human-centered design strategies in family and staff preparation for neonatal care.

OBJECTIVE

This paper describes human-centered design strategies used to develop solutions for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) patients, families, and staff in preparation for transition from an open bay (OB) NICU to a single-family room (SFR) NICU.

HUMAN-CENTERED DESIGN: Through a series of user group meetings, an interdisciplinary team of NICU families, administrators, providers, nurses, and other care team members (CTMs) collaborated with design professionals to create and carry out their vision for the new NICU. This process, which spanned the design, construction, and transition planning phases of the project, enabled stakeholders at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina (USA) to seek solutions for integrating patient and family-centered care into the fabric of its new facility and to redesign the care experience.

RESULT

From this work, new opportunities for family and staff engagement emerged.

CONCLUSIONS

Continuous end-user involvement led to targeted preparation for neonatal care.