Problem
It is also important to consider the sighline into each patient room from the perspective of privacy.
Here are two examples of patient rooms when viewed from the central hub of a public hallway.
In Example 1. We can easily see the toilet and shower from the hall.
e.g. 1
In Example 2. The confidential patient board (name, doctor, nurse, diagnosis, management plan) is easily visible.
e.g. 2
Both of these pose problems as the patient's doors is almost always open in a hospital. Patients are generally semi-naked most of the time (patient gowns are a topic for another post).
Proposal
Optimizing privacy around the washroom should be a goal. Many patients directly comment on how the loss of personal dignity is correlated with the loss of privacy they experience in hospitals. Public commodes and bed pans are some of the worst.
Even if the patient did close their hallway door suspecting they had privacy. When someone opened the hallway door to walk into their room, they'd easily see directly into the washroom (unless that door was also closed).
I favour placing toilets and showers closer to the inner walls of the hospital. This increases exterior walls that can be used as windows. It also eliminates the washroom sightline problem entirely.
The information board is a topic for another day. The concept of installing static whiteboards to convey information to the patient is rather antiquated. The information on these boards is frequently out of date, rather limited, or sometimes shares too much information with friends or family who may be visiting (like details of their diagnosis, or resuscitation status). A more relevant solution is tethering a tablet or screen in the room. The patient can view information pulled directly from the electronic health record, and use the device to communicate directly with the staff. The interface on the device can be adjusted based on the user's proficiency with technology.
If you want a 'low tech' alternative, the unit could automatically print out this information onto a single sheet of paper. (Again pulling the information directly from the EHR). This could be given to the patient. They could share it with their family, or take it home.
