Issue
Patients had to visit different departments for tests, diagnosis, treatment and counselling for breast cancer. Salisbury District Hospital wanted to create a non-clinical unit that would allow same day diagnosis, with all these services provided in one space, reducing the need for patients to visit other departments of the hospital.
Approach
A truly collaborative approach saw designers, staff and suppliers work with patients and their loved ones to map every step of a process that is one of the most difficult anyone can face. The unit combines the latest ideas in biophilic design with the smartest products and solutions, delivered with impeccable attention to detail. The focus was to create a space that barely feels clinical at all – furniture layout is reminiscent of a hotel or spa lounge, providing privacy in a relaxed way.
Solution
Biophilic design - the strategy of implementing nature into the environment – comes to life within the Breast Unit at Salisbury, as nature provides the inspiration for themed rooms: coast, river, forest, field, garden, park.
Altro Wood flooring was used throughout the space to create a sense of calm.
Photography is used throughout the unit, with floor to ceiling images on Altro Whiterock Digiclad used to transform spaces. The photographs were commissioned as part of the project and show local woodland, rivers or countryside, real and local to those using the spaces.
“For me, the most exciting and memorable part of the project happens through co-designing, by having the opportunity to give patients and staff a meaningful and real role in designing spaces.”
Penny Calvert, ARtCare team, Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
“The new unit will be a place to breathe when patients feel anxious. For staff, it will be a light, airy environment to work in with fewer interruptions, unlike our old rooms that were at the centre of a busy corridor.”
Sonnya Dabill, Salisbury District Hospital
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