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Designing for Efficiency: Examining the Impact of Centralized and Decentralized Nurse Stations on Interdisciplinary
Lindsey Fay1, Joshua E Santiago, Kevin Real
1Author Affiliations: Associate Professor, College of Design (Ms Fay), and Graduate (LTJ) Fellow and Teaching Assistant (Mr Santiago) and Professor (Dr Real), College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky, Lexington; and Enterprise Director Nursing Professional Practice and Development (Dr Isaacs), University of Kentucky HealthCare, Lexington.
Objective:
This study examined the impact of centralized and decentralized unit designs on an interdisciplinary team's perceptions of efficiency through the use of a preoccupancy and postoccupancy evaluation of a cardiovascular unit.
Background:
During the premove study, the service line was housed across 4 separate locations, each with a centralized nurses' station. The postmove design was housed on 1 floor with decentralized stations.
Methods:
For this qualitative study, 14 focus groups and 1 interview were conducted. Analysis of the data was guided by a developed framework for efficiency classified into 7 categories.
Results:
Outcomes reveal that efficiency was impacted by issues including walking, access to supplies and equipment, proximity to staff, and overall unit configuration and size.
Conclusions:
Although the design of the decentralized unit positions staff members closer to patients, many feel isolated while the centralized units seemed to better promote staff proximity and access to supplies.
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