When WellStar executives decided to build WellStar Paulding Hospital in Hiram Ga., they knew they wanted the new facility's design to be centered on two main factors.
"We said our main focus was to create the safest hospital we can create. Patient experience was the other element," says Mark Haney, president of the new hospital.
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To begin the project, hospital executives joined the Center for Health Design's Pebble Project — a research initiative exploring healthcare facility design that fosters improved outcomes — to create a hospital with these aims in mind. Now, five years later, the WellStar Paulding Hospital opened its doors on April 1, featuring an array of innovative design elements to enhance patient safety and experience.
Redesigned patient rooms
Designers decided to break from the norm when designing patient rooms, with the new layout geared 
toward two main patient safety factors.
"Falls and infection are the two things to protect against in the hospital," Mr. Haney says.
To address these concerns, designers did away with the traditional mirrored room setup and implemented a standardized floor plan for each room. Standardizing each room allows the head of the bed to be placed as close to the bathroom as possible to reduce the distance a patient has to travel between the bed and the bathroom, Mr. Haney says. Additionally, Mr. Haney says the designers chose to use sliding doors instead of hinge doors. In the event a patient was to fall and grab the door, the door would stabilize instead of swinging out.
"In many traditional hospital settings, when you get the patient in a room, you disable them. You put them in the bed and everything starts happening to the patient," Mr. Haney says. "What we wanted to create is an environment where we enable the patient to be successful and heal quickly. The main part of that is getting them out of bed and making it easy for the patient to move around."
To help combat infections, designers installed sinks in patient rooms that are angled in such a way that allows the caregiver to face the patient and start a conversation upon entering the room. Additionally, the soap dispensers are electronically monitored and track whether staff members are following proper hand hygiene protocol.
Harnessing nature's healing powers
Nature can be a powerful ally in the recovery process, so designers sought to maximize natural sunlight and incorporate it into the hospital's design through an abundance of windows.
"The research we have looked at shows there's evidence that sunlight and nature create a less stressful environment, and it improves the healing process," Mr. Haney says.
Each patient room was designed to provide ample space for family members, and this family space is located right next to a window. Additionally, each patient floor is bookended by what the hospital calls an overlook, an open area with chairs and floor to ceiling windows.
"We're encouraging our patients to get out of bed and go to the sofa unit next to the window in [their] room, but you can also go look at the overlook area and socialize," Mr. Haney says. "We want to create an environment that welcomes those patients to get out and live more like they do at home."
Patient Safety Design Elements Recap
• Standardized rooms with beds closer to bathrooms
• Sliding bathroom doors instead of hinges to provide stability in event of a fall
• Strategically placed sinks to promote hand hygiene and patient interaction
• Electronically monitored soap dispensers
• Family space adjacent to windows in every room
• Overlook area to promote patient socialization
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