February 14, 2018 — RedRick Technologies recently updated their reading environment planning guide that is designed to help health system staff optimize their medical imaging reading environments. Like the original version, which was the first such guidebook, this update was a collaboration with CannonDesign, an integrated global design firm with expertise in the healthcare space.
The planning guide provides practical, educational guidance for architects, designers, facilities planners and clinical department leaders involved in the design and renovation of medical imaging reading room environments. It summarizes best practices that meet the unique needs of medical imaging departments and defines the many factors that constitute good reading room design and siting, including how they can enhance the practice of radiology. Emphasized are how to employ good ergonomic principles to eliminate the repetitive stress injuries (RSIs) that often impact physician health and well being, and the consideration of proper reading room location to enhance communication between radiologists and the clinicians they service.
RedRick Technologies CEO Greg Patrick noted that recent articles published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology underscore the risk of RSIs and highlight the opportunity to mitigate them.
The planning guide breaks the reading environment into Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Zones to enable the reader to gain a more holistic understanding of the impact of ergonomics along with room lighting, sound and climate control, room flow, layout, siting and access. It also includes a checklist to facilitate implementation of the guidance, discusses factors that may impact the future of medical imaging and reading room design and provides a bibliography of recently published research on prevalence of repetitive stress injuries among radiologists.
The free planning guide can be downloaded here.
For more information: www.redricktechnologies.com