.jpeg)
NHS Trusts manage some of the most complicated and important real estate in the UK. Historical buildings and new developments are mixed together in campuses; hospitals and specialist health centres spread across districts. Millions of time-critical journeys take place each month, with stressed patients, concerned visitors and focused staff needing support to locate the correct ward, department or clinic.
Working with multiple NHS Trusts, Applied developed a comprehensive hospital wayfinding system that unifies the communication of navigation information across diverse healthcare estates. It tackles the core issues of wayfinding in a hospital environment by ensuring consistency, clarity and accessible design.
Using extensive research, cross-Trust collaboration and piloting, Applied has delivered systems, guidance and training to NHS Trusts to enable the planning, design, implementation and long-term maintenance of effective, affordable wayfinding.
34,000 members of staff
3 NHS Trusts
2.5 million+ patients each year
Mapping is a useful tool to help people understand quickly the layout of a building or floor and where they need to get to.
Applied created a simplified, modular, diagrammatic mapping system for hospitals that embeds accessibility and inclusive design principles, while remaining scalable, updatable and maintainable across large estates.
All system elements are tested in-situ with key stakeholders, including patient representation groups. The designs are then refined ahead of installation as part of a pilots or full rollout.
A range of signs are illuminated to ensure travellers can see the information in low-light conditions.
