The impact of colour on healthcare environments

For some, hospitals and other healthcare environments can be extremely daunting, and can even put some off attending appointments, or staying in overnight. Thankfully in recent years, there has been a growth in the understanding and acceptance of the impact that a healthcare environment can have on a patient’s mindset and perception of their treatment. Creating a happier, and more colourful environment for patients can even have an impact on their recovery, helping patients relax and put them in a better mood during their stay.

We at Knightsbridge recognise the importance of colour in our furniture, staying away from dull colours to create fun, eye-catching pieces of furniture that can help to create a welcoming environment. Our ranges in furniture vary, some with a focus on mental health environments, others with hospitals and nursing homes in mind, but all have been carefully created to suit the environment it is intended to serve.

Research into how colours make us feel and create different perceptions has shown that our mood can be influenced just by the colour of our environment. For instance, for children in hospital, utilising bright colours and decorations can make them feel more relaxed and less intimidated. We worked with Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool to design a hospital through the eyes of a child. It is thought that green shades evoke a sense of balance and harmony, so we used tones of green to create feature walls and on the furniture for a balanced room. We also incorporated yellow in the furniture, as yellow is synonymous with joy and happiness, but research has also shown that yellow can aid digestion and intestinal activity, useful for patients who may have trouble eating.

For mental health units, orange is best to be avoided as this can stimulate mental activity, which isn’t ideal for those with more intense psychological conditions. For these types of environments, neutral colours are best to create a consistent, relaxing environment. That being said, a touch of orange can stimulate the appetite and would therefore be an ideal colour palette for dining rooms in mental health facilities that treat people with eating disorders.

For healthcare environments, primarily hospitals, it has been proven that the use of colours in these settings, may that be on a feature wall or furniture, influences the patients, not only improving their mood, but also helping them on their road to recovery. It also benefits the members of staff, as it can help to ensure that diagnoses are correct. Knightsbridge utilises this research when designing our furniture to ensure that any new ranges not only look good but help make patients and residents as comfortable as they can be.