PERCEIVING HOSPITALITY IN HOSPITALS : TOWARDS A HOLISTIC HEALING ENVIRONMENT IN SINGAPORE HOSPITALS

Abstract

Preoccupation with achieving technical & economical efficiency takes virtual centre‐stage in hospital design. With the advent of modern technology & medical science, healthcare spaces are seen to be solely planned on the premise of rational planning. A misinterpretation of hospitality in hospital design is unfortunate since the original intentions are borne out of goodwill. Successes so far in 'hospitable' environments that rely on the direct importation from the hospitality industry are limited. The over‐emphasis of healthcare as a commodity exacerbates this problem. The hypothesis is that current hospitals are far less 'hospitable' than they should be, and that whatever successes they have achieved in terms of 'hospitality' are direct importation of ideology from the hospitality industry. The misinterpretation of hospitality originated from the limited understanding on the mechanisms of sensorial perception and it limited application in design processes, especially in the discourse of healthcare design. The hospital thus requires a hospitable environment that approaches design from the users’ perspective and supports this specific model of ‘hospitality’ that is not only contextual to its functions and user, but to be conceived with the holistic understanding of healthcare and sensorial perception in architecture. The dissertation will first define the terminologies and models to establish a foundation in order for subsequent discussion to be meaningful. It will also dwell into the theory of perception, as it is an essential component in understanding the concept of hospitality. Critical issues of contemporary approaches to hospitals will also be analysed and discussed. An indicative research will be designed based on the discussions, and conducted to further the claims of this dissertation. Hospitality in hospitals is fundamentally the provision of care for its users. The critical question is what kind of care is suitable? What the hospitals need is the instillation of ‘wellness’ and this should not be confused with ‘pleasuring’ the patient. The fundamental issue of hospitality design can be traced back to larger issues such as healthcare principle, design methodology and urban planning. Hospitals cannot be compromised in crisis such as SARS and H1N1 pandemic, and with the recent spike in hospital‐acquired MRSA, it is time to reflect upon the validity of this model.