Design
Dialogues
Meet the expert:
Welcome to Hord Coplan Macht's (HCM) "Design Dialogues" blog series! At HCM, we pride ourselves on our team of talented and dedicated professionals who are at the forefront of architectural innovation and design excellence. This series is designed to introduce you to the exceptional minds behind our most successful projects, offering a glimpse into their expertise, passion, and the unique perspectives they bring to their work.
AIA, ACHA
Heather Flannery is a principal and Certified Interior Designer in Hord Coplan Macht’s healthcare studio. She is responsible for leadership in the design process from concepts to contract documents, and she has been doing so for over 20 years. Heather’s background in architecture allows her the flexibility to work across studios and brings additional knowledge to lead complex interior healthcare projects.
Through insightful Q&A sessions, you'll get to know our experts on a deeper level. Discover what drives their creative processes, the challenges they overcome, and the latest trends they are pioneering. More importantly, learn how these insights can be applied to your own architectural and design projects.
Meet the Expert:
Brian Blazejak
Associate Principal
What inspired you to specialize in healthcare interior design, and how has your journey shaped your approach to creating healing environments?
What are some of the most exciting trends you're seeing in healthcare interior design right now, and how are these trends influencing your projects?
How do you incorporate evidence-based design principles into your healthcare projects, and what benefits have you observed for patients, families, and staff?
Can you share a recent project where innovative interior design solutions significantly improved the functionality and aesthetics of a healthcare facility?
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What major shifts have you seen in hospital bed tower design over the last 5–10 years?
One of the most impactful shifts I’ve seen is the allocation of on-unit and shared central spaces for staff respite and recharge. In older units, the needs of nursing and other support staff were often second to those of families and patients. They were commonly relegated to the ‘leftover space’ in hospitals. We are now providing wellness rooms for staff decompression, daylit break rooms that resemble many modern apartments, showcase kitchens, and even phone booths. Supplying supportive environments for the caregivers is critical to providing patients and families with the best clinical teams. A positive working environment is also vital for retaining staff in critical times when hospitals face uncertain operating challenges.
The integration of technology and its utilization as a resource for clinical teams and patient engagement is also a major evolution. Many patient rooms now include large wall monitors that not only are used for entertainment but also link directly to the medical record system for education and test result info. Further, these link to displays outside of the room to share pertinent into with staff and serve to control the room environment tailored to the patient's preferences on lighting and temperature. All of these functions can be controlled by the patient at an on-demand basis.
Brian Blazejak
How do you engage staff, patients, and family members in the design of patient care spaces?
Harnessing empathy for anyone in a healthcare environment and understanding their needs are the most powerful design tools we have. We carefully craft Lean style workshop engagements with clinicians, staff, and family advisory groups to not only get their perspectives but also allow them to be a true partner with us in space planning. Drawing upon both HCM’s evidence-based research and my own experiences in hospitals as a patient and family member in designing clinical environments has helped offer different perspectives for the team.
What design decisions in a bed tower have the most significant impact on staff efficiency and workflow?
Two of the most significant are the physical location of resources on the unit and the layout of the patient room. Clinical staff spend the majority of their day gathering different items needed for the patient, such as medications, equipment and various clean supply items which are all tailored to each person based on their requirements for treatment. We look wholistically at the functional goals and acuity of the unit to inform strategic decisions on the position of rooms to be closer or further from patient care based on frequency of demand.
For example, an acute rehabilitation unit may require more equipment for the daily treatment of the patient population so we may include more corridor alcoves to support quick, easy access of different assistive mobility devices. On the same unit we may also look at a solution to provide nurse-servers at each room which hold commonly used clean supply items, so the clinical team can spend more time with the patient without leaving for supplies. This decision has the added benefit to give back space from the footprint needed for a large clean supply room in the core of the building for more patient and family amenities.
Looking at the layout of the patient room, we can consider implementing a same-handed patient room layout concept for an intensive care unit. In this model, all of the patient rooms function identically with placing support items such as the patient position, wall hung medical devices and critical infrastructure like medical gases in the same location within each room. During a critical event, the clinical team can focus on patient care and not searching for items withing the room since every room is organized the same. Think of the organization of an airplane cockpit and how every plane of that particular class is setup the same so any pilot can fly any airplane.
Can you share how design choices affect patient healing and family experience?
One of our recent projects involved a major hospital addition and renovation to a community hospital.
We implemented innovative features such as PT (Physical Therapy) alcoves on patient floors, which promote mobility and contribute to faster healing times. We also installed color-tunable lighting in patient rooms to support circadian rhythms and improve sleep patterns. Recognizing the diverse needs of the community, we designed spaces that cater to different cultural and spiritual practices, such as a meditation room for stress relief, an Interfaith Chapel, and a kosher pantry for religious observance. These thoughtful design elements have greatly enhanced the facility's functionality and holistic experience.
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Hord Coplan Macht, 2025
About
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For a fun twist, if you could invite any three people to a dinner party, who would they be and why?
Bob Marley, Anthony Bourdain and Fred Dame… combining all of the three things I love for a great dinner experience: music, storytelling and wine. There would never be a dull moment.
What inspired you to specialize in healthcare interior design, and how has your journey shaped your approach to creating healing environments?
What are some of the most exciting trends you're seeing in healthcare interior design right now, and how are these trends influencing your projects?
How do you incorporate evidence-based design principles into your healthcare projects, and what benefits have you observed for patients, families, and staff?
Can you share a recent project where innovative interior design solutions significantly improved the functionality and aesthetics of a healthcare facility?
What's the most memorable place you've ever traveled to and why?
It’s been shown that a well-designed environment has a significant positive effect on healing that can result in a shorter average length of stay.
I tend to focus on small moves that have a high impact, such as incorporating daylight at the end of every patient corridor to entice movement out of the rooms and integrating landmarks or points of interest along the way. A thoughtfully planned patient unit is like a well-crafted piece of music; it tells a story as you travel along it:
Floor markings help benchmark step goals for discharge.
Integral benches in corridors provide moments of respite between long walks or can be used for shared family and clinical team use.
Consult rooms that are flexibly designed to transition from family meeting to staff conference or patient game room without delay.
Patient rooms with right-sized technology and furniture support the healing journey, but also help entice movement out into the corridor for interaction and community activities so we don’t encourage bed-ridden behavior.
Designs that incorporate lighting and graphics that reflect the needs of neurodiverse patients, visitors, and staff, and engage all populations.
The design environment shapes the entire patient experience and is an exceedingly important compliment to the clinical team and family. Our decisions have a lasting, personal, and significant impact on care.
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What major shifts have you seen in hospital bed tower design over the last 5–10 years?
How do you engage staff, patients, and family members in the design of patient care spaces?
What design decisions in a bed tower have the most significant impact on staff efficiency and workflow?
Can you share how design choices affect patient healing and family experience?
For a fun twist, if you could invite any three people to a dinner party, who would they be and why?
