NICU Design: What’s the Evidence?

Francesqca Jimenez (HDR)

The physical environment of the NICU has changed dramatically over the past 20 years. With an increased emphasis on family-centered care and attention to potential adverse effects of traditional open bay NICU designs, the single family room NICU has become an area of attention in hospital design and research. It is thought that private rooms may encourage more direct parent engagement with infants, thus improving outcomes. In addition to more family time, the environment may be quieter and less stressful for infants through reduced noise, light, and movement. While many articles and opinion pieces discuss the current thinking and ideas for NICU design based on single family rooms and reduction in potential environmental hazards, evidence is still limited from a scientific point of view with few studies, small sample sizes, and limitations of study design. The idea that we know the optimal environment for infants in the NICU is perhaps overstated and more research needs to be done to fully assess the state of the research and challenge “common knowledge”. In addition to detailing gaps in the literature and ways to thoroughly test entrenched ideas, we will present ideas for moving research forward to inform the decisions for the tiniest of patients.