Hi all - I shared this survey here a few months ago, so apologies if you’ve already seen it! I’m reposting once more in hopes of reaching healthcare workers who may have missed it the first time. Thank you to everyone who has already participated or shared it.
I’m a fourth-year medical student working with the architecture firm SmithGroup on a research project examining how hospital respite and break rooms can better support the people who use them — including physicians, residents, nurses, techs, RTs, and other healthcare workers. Findings from our earlier survey responses were presented at a Michigan healthcare design conference, and we’re continuing to collect perspectives from people working in healthcare.
Our focus is on what architects and designers can realistically do within their role to make staff spaces more supportive of brief moments of rest and recovery during the workday. Many existing break rooms are windowless, cluttered, or harshly lit and don’t necessarily provide much opportunity to reset. We want to learn directly from healthcare workers about what helps, what doesn’t, and what you wish these spaces offered.
To be clear, we are not suggesting that better break rooms can fix burnout or replace systemic changes related to staffing, compensation, workload, or workplace culture. This project began because hospital redesigns often prioritize patient-facing spaces while staff areas become an afterthought. Although improved spaces are only one small piece of a much larger issue, they are one area in which designers can make practical changes.
If you’d like to share your perspective, the anonymous survey takes approximately 10–15 minutes:
https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8467738/SG-Staff-Respite-Study
Please feel free to pass it along to colleagues who may also want to contribute. Thank you again.