Nurses' Interaction in Two Midwest Single-Patient Room Designed Neonatal Intensive Care Units

Abstract

This study sought to understand nurses' interactions with one another in two small-sized single-patient room (SPR) designed neonatal intensive care units (NICU). Data gathered from ten nurse participants at two Midwest hospitals gave insight into what designed features enhance or inhibit nurse interaction. Rashid's (2009) theoretical framework linking hospital clinicians' face-to-face interaction, based on patient type, framed the data collection and analysis; several collective findings were uncovered. The majority of nurse participants expressed concern about their decreased visibility of one another. Participants noted the increased need for trust of one another, and awareness throughout the unit. Participants also expressed new patient safety concerns as a result of over-reliance on technology, including infection control and miscommunication. Practical implications for these findings suggest including nursing staff in the design process. Interior designers must incorporate designed features that allow nursing staff to visually monitor patients, while simultaneously having clear visibility of one another.