Design and the Public Health
I think we can all agree that sustainable design is ever so important to the future of society and the built environment. In many ways, sustainable design focuses on environmental impacts of design and the ways in which design supports changes in people’s attitudes and actions to be more environmentally-conscious. But it’s a small step to take to understand how design can impact the public health at large.
Public health has always been of interest to me. I suppose it’s fitting that my professional career aligned me with a firm that specializes in design for scientific and medical research fields. Over the course of my career so far, I’ve witnessed the impacts my team and I can make, and have made, to support research into illnesses and diseases that affect people across the globe. It’s certainly fulfilling to see how we’ve provided support to the research and health care. But you don’t have to be directly involved in design of healthcare or medical research projects to make an impact on the public health through design.
If you were fortunate to join our AIAU course entitled “Just the Basics: Designing for Health and Well-Being” at the end of April, you heard a number of public health experts and design professionals discuss how design is capable of influencing the public health. Design for public health focuses on impacts of design on the health of various populations at large, and not specifically on the health of individuals in medical care. Public health professionals say there are a number of determinants of public health: Genetics, Behavior, Environmental & Physical Factors, Social Factors, and access to Medical Care. Of these, Social Factors are the most important, and Architects and designers can have the greatest impact on Environmental & Physical Factors, which can influence Social Factors.
Public health professionals are asking design professionals to do more to impact the public health. One such professional interviewed for the AIAU series suggested several strategies we can employ to help improve public health through our work. We as Architects must acknowledge that design affects public health in order to increase our positive influence, and we can do so at many levels, from design that impacts the individual person in their own space or building, all the way up to design that impacts many, many people through site and urban design. Another strategy to employ is to monitor our built projects post-occupancy to help ensure the effectiveness of the design in support of occupants’ health and well-being. While I know this is a difficult ask when our scope and fees are scrutinized, it’s important to have these conversations with our clients to emphasize the importance of ensuring occupants are provided a healthy and productive environment. A third strategy offered by public health officials is to ensure that all stakeholders in a project are aware of, and buy into, the idea of designing projects that enhance the health of occupants, visitors, and users to the greatest extent possible. Often, synergies can be identified that support occupant health, and the broader public health, through collaboration among all stakeholders.
Through this webinar, the AIA is promoting 6 evidence-based design approaches that Architects can employ to support and impact public health. Many of these are already ingrained in our approaches to projects, but they bear reinforcing in the context of the broader health of those who will interact with our projects. The first and most important approach is Safety—providing protection from harm, thus reducing occupant anxiety. While pursuing code-minimum design is a must, going further to foster a safe-feeling design will further reduce occupant anxiety and support their health, and the health of the public at large. Another approach is to foster Social Connectedness—using design to build relationships and bring occupants together. This develops trust and increases comfort. Designing with Environmental Quality in mind supports occupant well-being, and includes smart thinking about systems design, material selection, continued maintenance and cleaning, etc. This approach is related to the fourth approach of Sensory Environment—in which the design provides a perception of quality of space. The higher the perceived quality, the greater the anticipated positive impact on the occupant. Physical Activity is an important consideration when approaching the design, as the design can support and even encourage physical activity. A prominent stairway can be a design element and also encourage occupants to make use of it, in some cases eschewing elevators or escalators, especially if these motorized methods are less conspicuous (while being appropriately available and accessible for those with disabilities). Finally, incorporation or integration of Natural Systems into design may make use of the positive effects that studies into “biophilic design” have suggested—that offering immersion or views of natural spaces and elements can support human well-being and positive mental health. Rounding out this rather large nutshell of an article, example projects that make use of some or all of these approaches include the GSA Total Workplace Initiative, the Buckingham County Primary & Elementary School, and the Colorado Health Foundation Headquarters, to name a few. I’m sure there are articles available on some of these projects that will be of interest.
In the meantime, stay tuned for future programming. Hopefully, you caught our other 2021 AIAPV/AIAU “Live Action for Climate Action” seminar series courses on the 2030 Challenge and Resilience & Adaptation in May. We’ll finish off the seminar series with a course called Materials Matter on June 23—make sure you register for this event now! We’ve had some great conversations in our course seminars so far, and I expect the interactions to continue in this one, so make sure you take part and make your voice heard!
Jason A Darling, AIA, NCARB, ISPE, LEED-AP BD+C
Immediate Past President, AIA Potomac Valley
LSY Architects & Planners
www.lsyarchitects.com
