Renovation of a semiprivate patient room. Bowman Center Geriatric Rehabilitation Unit

Area of Science:

• Geriatric rehabilitation
• Healthcare environment design
• Quality improvement in healthcare

Background:

• Geriatric rehabilitation units often present environmental challenges for elderly patients.
• Semiprivate rooms can pose accessibility issues, particularly for wheelchair users and due to age-related changes.
• A need exists to optimize healthcare environments for patient comfort and functionality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance the accessibility and home-like quality of a geriatric rehabilitation unit.
• To address specific environmental problems identified in semiprivate patient rooms.
• To implement solutions derived from a total quality management (TQM) process.

Main Methods:

• Formation of a multidisciplinary total quality management (TQM) environment committee.
• Identification of patient room problems related to wheelchair use and aging.
• Remodeling of two semiprivate rooms based on TQM-identified solutions.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements reported in room accessibility.
• Enhanced storage, lighting, and overall appearance of the remodeled rooms.
• Positive patient feedback regarding cleanliness and environmental quality.

Conclusions:

• The TQM process effectively identified and resolved environmental issues in geriatric rehabilitation rooms.
• Remodeling based on TQM principles led to a more accessible and patient-centered environment.
• Optimizing the physical environment can positively impact the patient experience in geriatric care.