Leveraging extended reality technologies to enhance the architectural design of healthcare environments: A Systematic...

This systematic literature review examines the application of extended reality (XR) technologies, including virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR), in healthcare design. This review explores how XR tools are applied to evaluate and enhance healthcare environments and the types of data collected during these assessments. A comprehensive review of 25 studies, conducted following the PRISMA guidelines, highlights four primary themes: tool effectiveness, design feedback, wayfinding, and care environment experience. Findings indicate that XR technologies offer significant potential for evaluating and improving healthcare environments, enhancing user experiences, and optimizing the design process. While challenges such as cybersickness and the lack of haptic feedback remain, XR can significantly boost user engagement, support evidence-based design decisions, and provide a cost-effective alternative to traditional mock-ups. This review underscores the importance of integrating multiple methods for collecting objective and subjective data in XR-based evaluations to ensure well-informed design decisions in future healthcare facilities.