Abstract
Healthcare environments should be designed and operate as healing places for all their users. Therefore, the design of outdoor and indoor spaces, has to be oriented towards distressing solutions. The employees’ occupational stress affects their feelings and in turn their services they provide. Thus, this study aimed at the evaluation of the General University Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Greece according to its employees’ views. With the use of two step cluster analysis and the hierarchical cluster analysis, important findings were derived, concerning the interior and landscape design of the healthcare environment. The hospital indoor and outdoor spaces were investigated in relation with environmental parameters and psychological effects on their users. The results have shown a lack of the appropriate green spaces—even though their beneficial role was acknowledged—and marginal satisfaction with available spaces. Conclusively, it should be noted that there is still room for improvements in both interior and outdoor premises of the hospital to reduce stress levels, especially for its nursing staff.
Highlights
Hospitals are healthcare environments that should be designed under special conditions in order to create a sense of comfort and significantly reduce stress levels of patients, employees and of all their users
Their demographic characteristics were recorded and the findings reveal that 65.7% of the respondents are women and
As for their working experience, it was evident that 28.4% are occupied in the health care unit for 10.1–20 years, 27.2% for up to 5 years, 22% have been working at the General University Hospital of Alexandroupolis (GUHA) for 5.1–10 years, and the 19% for more than 20 years
Summary
Hospitals are healthcare environments that should be designed under special conditions in order to create a sense of comfort and significantly reduce stress levels of patients, employees and of all their users. Some of the wholesome impacts of green spaces, which appoint them as an imperative when designing and operating healthcare facilities, include health benefits; recreational or aesthetic values; escape for stressed employees; development of public relations; and air quality improvement [4]. Exposure to green spaces has turned to be salutary for mental illness recovery [5], not to mention that the introduction of items deriving from the natural environment in hospital settings are closely affiliated with advanced healing and treatment outcomes, as well as with the patient’s compliance with rehabilitation therapies [6]. The existence of green indoor and outdoor spaces incorporation of Environments 2020, 7, 61; doi:10.3390/environments7080061 www.mdpi.com/journal/environments
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