Our Insights
How Herman Miller helped create a welcoming and inclusive healthcare experience for an underserved community.
"What if one of the keys to addressing healthcare inequality wasn’t just providing medical services—but rather thinking about HOW one provides those medical services?
Across the country, many families lack access to quality healthcare due to high costs, location, inadequate or no insurance coverage, and/or a lack of culturally competent care. But while constructing healthcare facilities for underserved communities is vitally important to combatting healthcare inequality, because these communities have been historically neglected, the design of the space is absolutely critical. These spaces must fit not only the medical needs of the community, but also reduce anxiety, address preexisting perceptions about healthcare and create an environment where a previously underserved individual feels valued, respected and confident they will get the care they need.
Herman Miller, along with MASS Design Group, SmithGroup, and Corgan recently partnered to radically change the care experience at a new Federally Qualified Health Center in McKinney, Texas, a rural, underserved community in need of a facility that could handle a wide variety of healthcare activities. Through careful research, planning, design and implementation, this center was built to meet those needs, but also serve as case study in designing for equity. These underserved residents struggled with access to good quality healthcare and have a number of social barriers that make getting care all the more difficult. Through an intentional use of design and a novel combination of healthcare and wrap-around services, the Family Health Center is seeking to make care accessible for the people who need it the most. Learn more on Herman Miller's research page about the project here."