By Healthcare Facilities Today

In its "Take Five" series, Healthcare Design magazine asks leading healthcare design professionals, firms, and owners to share what’s got their attention and share some ideas on the subject. 

Healthcare Design recently talked to Mark VanderKlipp, president, principal in charge, at Corbin Design of Traverse City, Mich. Here, he shares his thoughts on wayfinding, coordinating the logistics of health system mergers, and designing for the big picture.

According to VanderKlipp, good design is all about hospitality.

"There are parts of a medical visit that patients know will be unpleasant. It’s incumbent on us to design experiences that make those visits as unexpectedly pleasant as possible. Design is about understanding the state of mind of a typical healthcare visitor as they access services and removing barriers to comprehension—even when those barriers are created by established organizational silos. An enlightened focus on the needs of your patients, and your shared internal response to them, is fundamental to patient experience planning," he said in the article.

Read VanderKlipp's four other points.