Mind the Gap: Healthcare Architecture Through Practice & Education

Saturday, April 1st, 2017, Array Architects hosted its first Mind the Gap event at the Herman Miller Showcase Room in Washington, DC. The event’s intention was to introduce design-based students and professionals to the multifaceted profession of healthcare architecture, and the innovative ways in which professionals apply design thinking to their daily tasks and design decisions.

To kick off the introductions, a group of professionals, varying in experience levels and skills, shared details pertaining to their specific design interests, personal skills, and how both have influenced their current positions within the healthcare design world. These professionals included CR Goodman’s Rolf Haardstad, ZGF’s Heidi Jones-Huffman, and Array’s future leaders Alec Higinbotham, Madeline Hill, Jennifer Matthews, and Marc Mendoza.

David Allison, Clemson University’s Director of Graduate Studies in Architecture + Health, followed the professional presentations with an in-depth explanation of healthcare in education. The students accepted into Clemson’s graduate program are exposed to the study of healthcare facility design and the impact of architectural settings that support the health of impacted individuals. Through a series of studios and projects, the students are challenged to enhance critical and design thinking skills to progress the ways in which the profession approaches healthcare design.

The design thinking theme transitioned throughout the event’s presentations and concluded with the professional panel discussion. The panelists comprised professionals from diverse backgrounds, such as healthcare clients, engineers, contractors, and manufacturer and advisory service representatives, who shared information about their respective backgrounds and how design thinking becomes a part of their daily routine. These panelists were asked to define what healthcare architecture means to them, how they apply design thinking in their daily activities, and what the future of the healthcare profession looks like.

Array Architects would like to thank the planning team, volunteers, speakers, and sponsors who made this event possible. Event sponsors and participants included CallisonRTKL, CR Goodman, SmithGroupJJR, Stantec, Wilmot Sanz, ZGF, and the American Institute of Architecture Students.

Click the button below to view all of the videos from our Mind the Gap event.

This blog authored by Jennifer Matthews, former architectural designer with Array.