Women in Design 2019 - 21

Photos by and rendering courtesy of ROBERT BREWSTER and EUA

This page: Rhode Island Veterans Home, Bristol,
designed by Brewster Thornton Group and SFCS

one assigned the bed near the hall and the bathroom. She saw that
the doors to the bedrooms were painted different shades to aid in
wayfinding-even though research has shown that abstractions like
color are often the first thing to go when people suffer memory loss.
Hiatt had unwittingly stumbled on what, in the face of an
increasingly aging population, would turn out to be one of the hottest
topics in design today. "It's clearer than ever that our environment is
an important factor in supporting us as we age," she says. "It can help
improve mobility, prevent excess disability, help deal with memory
and sensory loss, encourage socialization, boost energy, and make us
less vulnerable to injuries."

In a career that's spanned nearly 50 years and more than 800
projects, Hiatt has always worked with "clients who are willing to
push things a bit further," she says.
Bringing residents, as well as staff and family, into the fold when
it comes to designing their own environments is key, she says, adding
that their input has proven to be one of her greatest rewards. "I
love creating a context where people who didn't know they could
design learn that they can," she says. "They don't have to understand
operations and the business side of things, but if you give them the
tools and you're backed by the research, they're thrilled to have the
chance to make the place where they live and work better for them."
Women in Design 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Women in Design 2019
