Designing For Inclusive, Widespread Equality In Healthcare

As much as 27% of adults in the U.S. live with a disability. Recognizing the need for more inclusive healthcare facilities for this population, some commercial real estate firms have been motivated to design spaces that go beyond basic patient care. They aim to foster environments that are not only functional but also purposeful and comfortable for everyday experiences.

EwingCole, a Philadelphia-based architectural firm, is working to ensure that healthcare facilities are more accessible for all while focusing on how people with disabilities can be an active part of the design process, helping adapt buildings to their evolving medical needs. 

“We’re overdue for creating a more inclusive environment where not only do architects need to create better spaces, but individuals with disabilities should be actively involved in every part of the process,” said Adrienne Erdman, director of design research at EwingCole. 

Companies need to help level the playing field because disability is a universal experience and should be considered beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act compliance requirement, she said.

“When considering design for a variety of experiences, expanding the built environment to include robust disability-inclusive features is a natural extension of experience-driven design,” she said. “Designing for inclusivity increases the utility of space for all — a phenomenon known as the curb-cut effect.” 

The curb-cut effect refers to the concept that when even seemingly minor adjustments are made for people with disabilities — such as the inclusion of a small curb cut in a sidewalk for wheelchairs — it also benefits a larger demographic, including bicyclists, people with strollers, delivery workers and others. 

One of the challenges of creating truly inclusive spaces is recognizing that changes need to extend beyond the bare minimum of ADA compliance. This means companies may need to make larger investments and spend more time in the building phase. 

Erdman said this may prove difficult not only because budgetary constraints can be tough to overcome but also because the disability experience is typically not shared by the stakeholders who make decisions.

“Implementing effective and inclusive design solutions requires a process rather than adhering to a basic checklist, which, in turn, requires more time — something that many projects are already short on,” she said. “This process includes engaging individuals with disabilities for each project to thoroughly understand their needs in the project context, collaborating with them to develop prospective solutions and evaluating the effectiveness of design solutions in realistic conditions.”

Erdman said that despite the challenges, the time is now to create a more inclusive environment.

People with disabilities are living longer and more active lives than ever before, so it is imperative for them to play a bigger role in helping design these environments, she said.

“As the culture continues to shift towards more visibility for people living with disabilities and amplifying their role in designing the built environment, the more this work and their inclusion in it will expand,” Erdman said. 

EwingCole recently collaborated with a healthcare organization to create an equitable experience for people with disabilities on its campuses. 

The company took a mixed-methods, co-design approach, ensuring leadership stakeholders and people with disabilities had the opportunity to collaborate on solutions that served employees, patients and visitors alike. This process included using tools like co-design workshops, activity and journey mapping, and surveys to better inform the design recommendations in real time. 

LarriJo Boone, a critical care nurse and design researcher for EwingCole, said the more people feel comfortable and supported in the built environment, the more accessible the overall healthcare experience will be for all, leading to better health outcomes.

“Physical reminders of inclusion help to reiterate that care, support and a positive experience belong to every person who interacts within the built environment, which we hope will in turn work to break down any attitudinal barriers that exist within the client’s organization,” she said.

Erdman said she hopes that this project will be a catalyst to show how people with disabilities can be an integral part of designing the environment and to encourage them to help enhance the everyday experience of humanity. 

EwingCole has presented this case study to other clients to increase the dialogue between colleagues and clients and to illustrate what can be done to push the needle further. 

“Our clients and colleagues have hosted presentations and workshops with key project stakeholders to re-evaluate in-progress designs to make them more accessible and inclusive,” Erdman said. “Outputs from these meetings include integration of design solutions from this case study as well as new design solutions from further ideation.”

Erdman is seeing progress in design guidelines, including the American National Standards Institute incorporating larger turning radii for power wheelchair clearances. The British Standard Institute has also released a guide on how to design for neurodiverse populations.

As a result, EwingCole’s clients are beginning to acknowledge that making places more disabled-inclusive for patients should be top of mind, not an afterthought. Boone said she hopes that these conversations will extend beyond public spaces like waiting rooms to behind the clinical line.

EwingCole will continue to concentrate its efforts on creating disabled-inclusive spaces that are tailored to the needs of its clients.

“We’re focused on persons with disabilities within the context of each project, which, in turn, enables thoughtful application of inclusive design solutions,” Erdman said. “Embedding a process to develop informed design considerations that go beyond ADA as part of our practice ensures we are a forward-thinking firm that leads with inclusivity at the heart of all work that we produce.”

This article was produced in collaboration between Studio B and EwingCole. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to [email protected].