W H I T E P A P E R

Designing Human Performance Labs

Designing Human Performance Labs

Human Performance Careers Are Hot.

Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and athletic training account for 7 of the 40 fastest-growing occupations in the United States, with employment projected to increase by as much as 31% between 2016 and 2026.1

Colleges and universities are expanding and adding programs to meet this demand. Consider the following statistics:

• The number of bachelor’s degrees awarded in “parks, recreation leisure and fitness studies” — half of which were in kinesiology and exercise science — soared 197% between 2000-01 and 2016-17.2

• The number of Occupational Therapist (OT) and Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) programs skyrocketed 73% between 2007 and 2018.3

• The number of Physical Therapist (PT) and Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) programs jumped 40% between 2007 and 2017.4

As institutions look to build, expand and upgrade facilities to accommodate this growth, human performance labs are a crucial component to the success of these programs. These spaces, first and foremost, provide the hands-on experience students need as they prepare for their future careers. In addition, they facilitate research that advances the professions, and serve as valuable health and wellness resources for the campus and surrounding community.

In the following whitepaper, we share considerations for the planning and design of these spaces.

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Kahler Slater Whitepaper

Interdisciplinary SpacesCollaborative practice is becoming the norm in health care, with teams of caregivers from a variety of disciplines — medicine, nursing, PT, OT, pharmacy, nutrition, mental health, dentistry and others — working closely together to provide comprehensive, individualized care. Colleges and universities are responding to these practice changes by adopting interprofessional education curricula that give students experience working in this type of environment. Well designed human performance labs should support this approach.

In this model, space and equipment should be shared among departments as much as possible. This gives students and faculty from various disciplines opportunities to work together

in a collaborative environment, allowing them to share and learn from one another. It also simulates students’ future workplaces, helping ensure a smooth transition from the classroom to the clinical environment. Furthermore, from operational and budgetary standpoints, this approach maximizes the use of the facility and equipment and avoids unnecessary duplication of valuable resources.

The human performance lab should ultimately include a variety of “collaboration stations”— gathering spaces where students and faculty can share information and ideas in both formal and casual encounters.

←Mary Baldwin University’s Murphy Deming College of Health Science programs have a strong emphasis on interprofessional education, bringing together students from various health professions to work collaboratively in class and lab settings. Curriculums for their Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD), Master of Science in Physician Assistant (MPAS) and RN to BSN programs were developed collaboratively to ensure students are equipped with the skills and competencies necessary to be part of a successful health care team. PT, OT and Simulation labs were all designed to accommodate various class sizes and are considered College resources shared by all departments.

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Designing Human Performance Labs

↑Florida Gulf Coast University – College of Health Professionals BuildingFGCU’s Exercise Science and Athletic Training programs are integrated into the College of Health Professionals Building. The Human Performance Laboratory is located adjacent to the PT/OT and nursing programs and includes a completely dedicated aquatics rehabilitation suite featuring a state-of-the-art Hyrdoworx therapy pool with an integrated treadmill. The Musculoskeletal Laboratory contains numerous advanced therapeutic modalities, therapeutic exercise, multiple pneumatic treatment tables, and a state-of-the-art diagnostic ultrasound unit.

Integrate the Kinesiology LabInterdisciplinary collaboration and sharing of spaces and equipment should also apply to the kinesiology and/or exercise science departments. These departments can often be siloed from their therapeutic counterparts such as Physical and Occupational Therapy. However, because many of these labs share similar functional and space needs, we encourage clients to look for ways to integrate Kinesiology into the PT, OT and Athletic Training curricula and, consequently, design the kinesiology lab to be open to these students.

When taking this approach for your kinesiology lab, consider adding a gait analysis lab in adjacent space that can be segregated when necessary to protect the costly equipment from misuse, but still allow convenient access by students, faculty and patients.

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Kahler Slater Whitepaper

Support Health Promotion and Wellness

There is growing emphasis among health care providers on health promotion and wellness (HPW). By focusing on overall health and helping patients avoid illnesses, injuries, accidents and disabilities, providers can help patients improve their quality of life, extend their life expectancy, and reduce their health care costs.

To embrace this trend and prepare students, human performance and rehabilitation labs should be designed to give students the hands-on experience necessary to understand how to develop fitness plans and monitor progress. These spaces must be planned to accommodate the exercise and lab equipment required to assess body composition, cardiovascular performance, endurance, strength, metabolism,diet, and nutrition. Additionally, the trend on many campuses is to co-locate student recreation and student health clinics to fully embrace this concept.

Elgin Community College Health & Life Sciences Building

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Designing Human Performance Labs

A dedicated aquatic rehabilitation suite including a therapy pool with an integrated treadmill should be considered as an integral part of your human performance lab design. It supports teaching and could be used as a student wellness amenity.

Elgin Community College Health & Life Sciences Building

Consider a Therapy Pool

University of Wisconsin-Madison

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Kahler Slater Whitepaper

When reviewing work area plans and furniture, evaluate how well the design and amenities work for your faculty — everything from seating, monitor height placement, laptop support, and flexible work surface heights. Using mock-ups of work area selections will involve faculty and staff in the process and allow them to evaluate ideal options and seating arrangements. These mock-ups educate and confirm to faculty that they will have the ability to customize their work areas, even selecting from a kit of parts to create spaces that work best for them. Stand up desking is a current

trend, but is not always embraced by all. To get the most of mock-ups and trials, be sure to have a way to document and record responses from users and integrate suggested changes before finalizing designs, purchasing furniture and equipment, and eliminating costly mistakes. Faculty involvement creates buy-in and educates the team to create effective work areas.

Importance of Mock-ups

Global Water Center

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Designing Human Performance Labs

Integrate Technology into Training and Treatment

Technology integration is no longer considered an optional amenity. It is expected by today’s students. There are several ways to integrate technology into these programs, not only as a teaching tool but also as a form of treatment in human performance.

As with active learning classrooms, there is a trend toward integrating teaching technology into human performance labs. By having a technology-enhanced setting, collaboration and sharing of ideas is greatly improved. Students can observe and share concepts immediately with the entire class, encouraging peer-to-peer interaction and assessment. This can be accomplished through recording and monitoring equipment strategically placed throughout the lab setting.

Additionally, PT and OT professionals are discovering many ways high-tech tools can benefit

their patients, such as using robotic prosthetics and microelectrode arrays to help patients with spinal cord injuries regain movement, as well as incorporating robotic equipment and gaming systems into rehabilitation programs. Colleges and universities should include these tools in their labs. Not only will it benefit patients being treated there today and help prepare students for their future careers, it can also open the door to research that could lead to exciting new discoveries.

The use of technology to support human performance is a subject ripe for research, collaboration and innovation. PT and OT programs should explore ways to partner with their engineering program colleagues, inviting them into the lab to work together to develop the next generation of products.

← Kansas City University of Medicine and Bioscience – College of Osteopathic Medicine at JoplinWith a focus on hands-on diagnosis, KCUMB’s Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine lab includes OMM tables to allow students to learn and refine their skills in manipulation techniques that are used to treat structural and functional issues of bones, joints, and tissues. The strategic placement of monitors throughout allows easy access to students by instruction and guides.

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Kahler Slater Whitepaper

Provide Training in Transitional CareHelping patients and their caregivers successfully navigate transitions among health care and home settings can have a tremendously positive impact on patients’ health outcomes, patient and family/friend caregiver satisfaction, and managing health care costs. With this in mind, locating a home health lab adjacent to a restorative and human performance lab can be very beneficial. This collaborative approach allows students to apply the skills learned in the group setting, learn how to restore activities of daily living, as well as practice working in a team setting outside of a hospital or clinic.

Sinclair College – Health Sciences Center

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Designing Human Performance Labs

Demand for physical therapists, occupational therapists, and athletic trainers is skyrocketing. College and university programs in these fields are growing rapidly to meet that demand. Thoughtfully designed human performance labs that foster interdisciplinary collaboration, incorporate new technological tools, and respond to changes in the ways health care services are delivered are essential components in the success of these programs.

1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/fastest-growing-occupations.htm

2. National Center for Education Statistics (Bloomberg Opinion: “American Students Have Changed Their Majors”)

3. American Occupational Therapy Association (https://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/EducationCareers/2018-conference-presentations/2018-Trends-in-Accreditation-Higher-Education.pdf)

4. Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (http://www.capteonline.org/AggregateProgramData/Archive/)

In Conclusion

References

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About Kahler Slater

Kahler Slater creates environments that enrich lives and achieve powerful results. Through architecture, interior design, strategic advisory and environmental branding, we leverage design to help our clients reach their strategic goals for advancing their organizations. We use a Performance-Based Design process that is grounded in research to ensure that we design for change. With clients around the United States, Canada and Singapore, our team includes marketplace experts in the higher education, healthcare, corporate office, multi-family living environment, hospitality, and sports and wellness sectors.

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Contact

For further information, please contact:

Larry Schnuck, Vice President and Higher Education Team Leader at lschnuck@kahlerslater.com

Enriching Life.

Achieving Powerful Results.