As we move forward into a new decade, we’re rethinking the way we view office space interior. We’re saying goodbye to overhead fluorescent lights, harsh textile patterns, and bare walls. 2020 and the years ahead are all about Biophilia and our instinctive bond with nature and our natural surroundings. Biophilic design and principles take this deep, instinctual bond we share with nature and applies it to spaces where we live and work.
What is Biophilic Office Design
In the last few years, there has been an increasing trend of bringing the elements of the outdoors, indoors, and with some spaces even going as far as having full-sized trees incorporated into the design and structure of office space.
But Biophilic design is more than just having green walls and bringing in a few plants. Apple, the company that made touch-screen smartphones an integral part of our daily lives, has created a tree-filled building to counterbalance the everyday use of technology. But, unless you’ve got the cash like Apple has, building a state-of-the-art office space made up of 7,000 indoor trees, you might be intimidated by the idea of Biophilic design.
Fortunately, there are ways you can incorporate this into your present office space without breaking the bank.
Living Walls
Living walls don’t just make great Instagram background settings. These vertical gardens are a stunning and easy way to incorporate more greenery into your clinic; especially if you’re low on space. You can choose to make your living wall as big or as small as you want. Also, you don’t have to confine your living wall to a rectangular or square shape. Honeycomb patterns are a popular shape for smaller living walls. Make sure that you’re choosing plants that do well indoors and that they have access to light. According to HGTV, snake plants, peace lily, and the Brazil philodendron do well in these types of gardens.
Color
On the other hand, maybe you don’t have a green thumb. That’s okay. You can still incorporate elements of Biophilic design through the use of color. Blues, greens, and browns are all naturally occurring in the wild and have calming abilities. Cool colors like green, blue, indigo, and violet hues help to relax and calm the body. These cool colors decrease the heart rate, respiration, and blood pressure because they affect the nervous system.
Cool and neutral colors in your clinic can help keep patients relaxed, focused, and calm during treatment. Some ways you can incorporate color are by:
-Painting your walls
-Using EcoPro Pillow Covers in green or blue
-Choosing furniture and textiles with cool or neutral colors
Graphics
If space, money or time are limited and you can’t build a living wall or paint your clinic, graphics are a great way to incorporate Biophilic design into your clinic. Swapping out your current art pieces with images of forests, oceans, animals, and plants still provide that connectedness to nature without breaking the bank.
Lighting
It’s no surprise that after a day or two without sunshine we’re feeling sluggish and a little blue. Exposure to natural light is critical for Vitamin D metabolism in humans. According to the Impact of Light on Outcomes in Healthcare Settings, light impacts human health and performance of visual tasks, controlling the body’s circadian system, and affecting mood and perception, and by enabling chemical reactions in the body.
According to this study, high light levels are linked to better performance of complex visual tasks and light requirements increase with age. Additionally, the presence of windows in a workplace and access to daylight were linked with increased satisfaction with the work environment.
Keeping your windows open, using LED light bulbs, and even incorporating natural light therapy lamps throughout the clinic can help keep your staff and your patients’ moods up!
Staying Naturally Happy
Armed with these 4 tips, your clinic staff and patients can stay naturally happy. Looking for more clinic tips? Check back weekly to learn more about going green, leadership development, and conference updates!