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Policeman waiting by bed in an A&E hospital

Project to stamp out A&E violence in hospitals
Researchers from the Health & Patient Safety lab at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design joined a consortium led by design consultancy Pearson Lloyd to redesign hospital Accident and Emergency departments.

The aim was to develop innovative new ways to reduce violence and aggression towards NHS staff, which is estimated to cost at least £69 million a year in staff absence, loss of productivity and additional security.

The year-long project, Reducing violence and aggression in A&E by design, was run by the Design Council, and commissioned by the Department of Health. The consortium was selected from a field of 47 applications by an independent panel of 20 experts in specialisms such as design, health care, patient experience, architecture and security which was convened by the Design Council.

To respond to the challenge Pearson Lloyd formed a partnership the RCA's Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Tavistock Institute, Tavistock Consultancy Service, Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust, Prof Jonathan Benger from the University of West of England and Dr Nigel Caldwell, from the University of Bath.

The team worked with frontline staff from three NHS hospital trusts to understand this complex issue. The resulting design programme has three main elements:

  • Guidance: Providing information to patients and other service users to alleviate the stress of the unknown. A system of environmental signage, which designers have called information 'slices': clear, intuitive, location-specific information. These give patients guidance about their physical location and where they are within the A&E process. A personal 'process map' explaining what to expect from the treatment process and when to expect it, in order to manage users expectations of waiting times. Screens which provide live, dynamic information about how many cases are being handled and the current status of the A&E department. 
  • People: Building a healthy mutual relationship between the user and the system. A new approach to greeting patients on arrival, answering their questions and ensuring they start the A&E experience positively.
  • Toolkit: A toolkit for NHS managers, clinicians and designer and healthcare planners who want to develop and deliver a better service in effective and inspiring environments.

Reducing violence and aggression in A&E by design follows the success of similar initiatives by the Design Council and the Department of Health – Design Bugs Out and Design for Patient Dignity – two projects in which the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design played a prominent role.

See also previous news item here

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