KU Health & Wellness
The Institute of Health & Wellness Design maintains an academic program with internship opportunities and researches topics such as decentralized nursing stations in inpatient units, critical access hospitals, patient-centered medical home systems, and healthy community design processes.
The KU Institute of Health & Wellness Design was founded by Kent Spreckelmeyer and Frank Zilm in 2008, with the support of a core of firms and KU ArcD alums. The Institute of H&W was created to establish a professional option in the Master of Architecture program and consolidate the body of work related to health facility design practice, teaching and research being conducted at the KU School of Architecture & Design.
Since 2008, more than 260 students have graduated with a Master of Architecture degree and graduate certificate in Health & Wellness Design. Many of those alums are now engaged in architectural practice across the country in some of the leading healthcare design firms and are mentoring the next generation of young architects in this field.
Students interested in the Health & Wellness Design at the University of Kansas can enroll in the Master of Architecture program and/or pursue the Certificate in Health & Wellness Architecture. More information below and in Academics and Resources.
The Institute of H&W Design also has a large body of work in healthcare design research, including studies in facility planning, rural and critical access hospitals, emergency departments, surgical environments, inpatient care environments, environments for aging, patient safety, and clinical teamwork. Our faculty also combines more than 120 publications in the field of healthcare design, offering expertise in post-occupancy evaluations, design thinking, human factors, and design simulations involving physical mock-ups.
Architects, designers, researchers and clinicians interested in collaborating with the Institute of H&W can look at Our Work and contact our Faculty.
