Pearson Lloyd project battles violence in A&E departments

Pearson Lloyd is working on a wide-ranging project covering service, information and interior design which aims to reduce violence and aggression towards NHS staff in hospital accident and emergency departments.

The consultancy was appointed to the work at the end of April as part of the year-long Reducing Violence and Aggression in A&E by Design project, which is being run by the Design Council for the Department of Health.

Pearson Lloyd was selected from a field of 47 applications by an independent panel of experts.

The consultancy is working with a partnership that includes the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, Professor Jonathan Benger from the University of the West of England and Dr Nigel Caldwell of the University of Bath.

The team is working with frontline NHS staff to develop and trial user-centred design solutions and is set to unveil finalised designs in October.

Sunand Prasad, senior partner at architect Penoyre & Prasad and chairman of the judging panel, says, ’This project stems from the belief that the experience of going to and working in an accident and emergency department can be hugely improved by rethinking their design.’

He adds, ’That has to mean design in its widest sense, from organisational aspects such as the way people, in need of help, are received and given information to the physical settings in which they will spend some time.’