Intelligent hospital signage to make getting around easier
Finding their way around a hospital is a constant challenge for people coming for treatment or visiting a loved one. The information given on outdoor signage, color codes and pictograms must be understood at a glance, even by a weakened or anxious user.
At the same time, the law requires all establishments open to the public to clearly mark out the accessibility of their buildings, particularly for the disabled. To meet legal and public expectations, special care must be taken with hospital signage.
Signage has several functions. Directional signage creates a coherent, easy-to-understand route for users. They also need to understand where they are in the space: this is what we call situational signage. Explanatory signage, which authorizes or prohibits an action, also plays a major role in hospitals.
Another challenge in designing hospital signage is the target audience, which includes both users and staff. So it’s vital to prioritize information, making departments that receive the public more visible than those that only welcome staff.
Finally, signage needs to be scalable. Over the years, the hospital will undoubtedly be redeveloped, expanded or lose a department. It is therefore important to provide equipment that can evolve over time.
