Healthcare Design - August 2023 - 14

encouraging patients and families to indulge in
them, " says David Taglione, design director at
ICrave (New York), which delivered the interior
design, experience design, and lighting design on
the project.
Opened in February, the 45,000-square-foot
Family Commons houses a variety of spaces, including
pre-K to high school classrooms with a
science lab and library, reading alcoves and resting
nooks, a music room with a recording studio,
makerspace, hair salon, indoor and outdoor play
areas, café with coffee and snacks, and centralized
patient and housing services.
To meet the many needs of the diverse set of
P
14
ATIENTS AND FAMILIES receiving care at St. Jude Children's
Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., which
treats childhood cancer, sickle cell disease, and other
life-threatening disorders, often live in off-campus
housing provided by St. Jude-sometimes for weeks or
months at a time. Recognizing this situation, St. Jude
offers services for families, such as pharmacy or medical
supply pick-up, and conveniences like a post office and
bank as well as respite and activity spaces. " It was a constellation of things
that weren't necessarily connected and not always easy to access, " says
Catherine Corbin, chief business innovation officer at St. Jude Children's
Research Hospital.
As part of a strategic plan, the organization conceived an idea to consolidate
those services and activities into one location to provide better respite
from the hospital's intense clinical environment. In early 2017, the organization
moved forward to renovate a vacated inpatient unit into its first
treatment- and clinical-staff-free zone, named Family Commons.
The organization partnered with design and consulting firm Ideo (Chicago),
which conducted qualitative, ethnographic research with patients
and families. The feedback from patients confirmed
many of St. Jude's original ideas about
what would make this space great for kids and
teenagers, like having space to play or private
areas to rest and nap. However, the research
also revealed new insights about what would
make Family Commons uniquely valuable to
parents and caregivers, too, in ways that St. Jude
hadn't yet considered. Those included a private
area to cry or an environment where families
could build a project together while teaching
children life skills such as how to use a hammer
or sewing machine.
" This place is meant to bring back the little
things in life that fall to the wayside when you're
sick, making lost experiences accessible and
MORE ONLINE: For more on the interior
design strategy for Family Commons, read a
Q+A with ICrave's David Taglione at hcdmagazine.
com/projects/st-jude-interior-design.
ABOVE: The makerspace
offers technology and
tools, including a 3-D
printer, so families can
experience hands-on
learning. BELOW: Musical
instruments, practice
rooms, and a recording
studio are housed in the
music room.
users, Taglione says the team utilized inclusive
design strategies, including selecting furniture
of varying scales and sizes to ensure comfort for
individuals of all ages and abilities. Additionally,
flexible seating arrangements accommodate
different group sizes. Safety was also a crucial
consideration in the design of the play spaces,
so the project team incorporated appropriate
heights and safety measures while still creating
exciting and enjoyable areas, enabling children
to explore and engage in play without compromising
their well-being, he adds.
Since opening, Family Commons has been
well received, Corbin says, with an average of
30 families a day using the resting nooks, while
the salon has provided more than 1,000 services
to date. " It's giving patients and their caregivers
a way to be families together, " she says.
-Anne DiNardo, executive editor
AU GUST 2023
HCDMAGAZINE.COM
ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL
http://hcdmagazine.com/projects/st-jude-interior-design http://hcdmagazine.com/projects/st-jude-interior-design http://www.HCDMAGAZINE.COM
Healthcare Design - August 2023

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