Steelcase Health prescribes 12 new products

Steelcase Health prescribes 12 new products for the healthcare industry

Chicago, IL– June 12, 2006 – Facing an aging population and increased demand for services, healthcare providers have requested a new prescription for the healthcare environment. Steelcase Health is a new company focused on healthcare environments and how products within these environments can help make them more comfortable, efficient and conducive to the healing process. Steelcase Health will debut at NeoCon 2006 with a full line of products, including 12 new products from the Steelcase family of companies.

Over the past two years, members of the Steelcase Health team conducted observational research at leading health facilities like Ascension Health, Intermountain Healthcare, Kaiser Permanente, Massachusetts General Hospital, Mayo Clinic and other top Integrated Delivery Networks (IDNs) to evaluate a wide variety of interactions in numerous healthcare environments – especially how patients receive care and how caregivers perform their duties.

“People develop routines sub-consciously and if a piece of furniture or process is uncomfortable or doesn’t work just the right way, they adapt and create work arounds, ” said Alan Rheault, director of product development at Steelcase Health. “Observing people in clinics and hospitals gives us the opportunity to see these adaptations and how people actually work and interact with their surroundings.” “That’s why something as simple as adding a foot ring to a table or making the same table with a softer, more inviting shape can make a difference in how people work.”

Steelcase Health products focus on three key groups: patients, caregivers and partners in care. Each group has distinct needs within the healthcare environment and Steelcase Health meets these needs with creative solutions inspired by the unique interactions between these different groups and their work environment. The following list gives an overview of the new products being introduced by Steelcase Health and the Steelcase family of companies to support the healthcare industry.

1. Opus Casegoods by Steelcase Health

There is no cookie-cutter solution for every room in a hospital or clinic. Steelcase Health recognizes this fact and provides a solution with Opus casegoods, which combine the convenience of traditional freestanding casegoods with the flexibility of modular furniture. The array of components combines in a multitude of configurations including storage, seating, display, and even a sink unit to support various activities in healthcare facilities. The design allows for flexibility to adapt over time to changing needs. Components are available in laminate and veneer with hardware choices to complement any décor.

2. Verge Stool by Steelcase Health

Healthcare providers spend a lot of time on their feet – on average, a nurse stops for less than two minutes to do a given task – but for the brief moments of respite, Steelcase Health presents Verge. This stool can be approached from any angle and exited effortlessly, while providing support and a dose of delight through a unique comfort mechanism. The stool ring gives the user a place to rest their feet for a comfortable seated position while charting or completing other tasks. The steel framework is robust enough to withstand the 24/7 environment of a hospital, but its design is lightweight enough to easily move and reposition without casters.

3. Overbed Table by Steelcase Health

The overbed table is more than a place for patients’ meals – it’s also used by doctors, nurses and family to accommodate almost everything that happens in the room. Using observation as a launching point, Steelcase Health designers re-imagined the overbed table to make it even more useful. The table has a divided top with additional table space that can be pulled out or hidden when not needed. The patient side features a concave surface that can be brought closer to the patient than traditional rectangular tables and a cup holder that helps control unnecessary spills.

4. Mobile Computing Cart by details

Workers in the healthcare industry are often like nomads, spending limited time in any one area and always on the move, but computing equipment can impede mobility. Details is introducing a mobile computing cart designed for the fast-paced healthcare environment, allowing healthcare workers to take the computer station with them. With easy to adjust height and smooth movement, the new mobile computing cart allows each user to adapt the cart as they see fit, so that keyboards and equipment can be used in seated or standing postures. An optional re-chargeable power system can be installed, minimizing the need to tether the unit to a building electrical outlet.

5. Articulating Wall-Mounted Computing Kiosk by details

As real-time information technology makes the move into rooms throughout the healthcare facility, computing hardware is quickly taking up already limited space and creating a challenge for users and IT technicians alike. Details presents two new fixed computing solutions. The first is a wall-mounted unit developed in conjunction with the industrial design firm, IDEO. The kiosk offers 180º range of movement to allow for orientation flexibility. Its sleek, clean aesthetic is complemented by a fluid sit-to-stand adjustability and is capable of supporting a variety of hardware.

6. Wall-Mounted Computing Kiosk by details

Details also introduces a computing kiosk designed in tandem with Steelcase Health’s industrial design team. The wall-mounted computing kiosk provides a simple and adjustable computer hardware support structure to be used by clinicians, with aesthetics that complement other new Steelcase Health products. Flexible to accommodate a variety of hardware, this unit can be attached to drywall or mounted to the Montage panel system (see next page).

7. Neighbor Waiting Area Collection

During their observations at numerous clinics and hospitals, researchers from Steelcase Health noticed the way patients’ families tended to gather and share and create their own space in the waiting room. The traditional waiting room lineup of chairs around the perimeter often makes this community creation difficult. In response to this need, Brayton introduces enhancements to the Neighbor collection – chairs, tables and couches that can be arranged to foster this impromptu formation of communities. With high backs and a variety of components, the Neighbor collection allows waiting rooms to be divided into separate spaces. The pieces are comfortable, but not overly contoured, which allows people to use them in a variety of postures.

8. Montage Modular Nurse’s and Reception Stations by Steelcase

Hospital and clinic spaces have multiple functions. Nurse’s and reception stations need to meet the ergonomic and utilitarian needs of those that work there, but also need to be inviting and harmonious with the design of the environment. The unique adaptability of the Montage system meets the needs of a variety of users throughout the healthcare facility – not just in offices – and the modular design allows for changes over time.

9. Stand Up Table by Steelcase Health

Nurse’s stations are often the site of impromptu meetings in hospitals and clinics, and rarely do doctors and nurses sit and talk for extended periods. This stand up table provides an inviting gathering space away from main traffic areas, but close to the activity to support group interactions or individual work. The height of the table and the foot ring around the base are designed to support the worker and encourage changes in posture.

10. Move Multi-Purpose Chair by Steelcase

The Move Multi-Purpose Chair uses Steelcase’s patented dynamic live seat technology to support users. Incorporating a system of seat flexors under the cushion, Move chairs conform to the user to ensure a comfortable seating position that adjusts to different postures. This technology is packed into a visually clean package that is simple in form, yet sophisticated and innovative. The chair is perfect for exam rooms, training areas and anywhere stacked seating is needed, and is available in a variety of configurations with seamless healthcare fabrics and vinyl.

11. Laboratory Solutions by Steelcase

Laboratory scientists and researchers often prefer the durability of steel cabinetry for the lab environment. Laboratory Solutions offer a broad range of overhead and below the worksurface cabinets in a variety of door and drawer configurations to allow for storage and organization of paperwork, instruments, equipment and other laboratory items. Choices also include a fresh palette of powder coated paint finishes and hardware to compliment the lab. The steel cabinets are an enhancement to the flexible, modular lab bench system offered by Steelcase that can be reconfigured to meet the changing needs in the healthcare environment.

12. Radiology Workstation by details

Within the healthcare system, radiologists are some of the most extreme users of computing hardware. As the technology for viewing patient images shifts from film to digital, doctors have become tethered to computers for long periods of time in relatively static postures. Details and Steelcase Health have worked with a number of radiology practices to understand the unique challenges of these specialized work environments. Emphasizing simple-to-use adjustments, the Radiology Workstation offers a wide range of adjustable height surfaces, flexible monitor supports, work tools, lighting and ergonomic seating to meet the needs of today’s radiologists.

Contacts

Libby Ferin
616.248.7038
eferin@steelcase.com

Michael Pflughoeft
414.271.1314
mikeyp@khmojo.com