There are several reasons for the interest and emphasis on using formal research to
guide facility decision-making in the health care sector. One is that over $200 billion is
expected to be spent over the next decade on hospital construction (Suttell, 2007).
To increase the likelihood of designing facilities that function well for patients and staff
and are cost-effective, hospital administrators and facility planners are drawing
on evidence-based design to increase the likelihood that new facilities will generate the
expected outcomes. Unlike the corporate office sector, where a poorly designed
environment may cause dissatisfaction and annoyance, inhibit effective communication,
or contribute to relatively minor health problems, in a hospital context the consequences
of getting the design wrong can be far more serious, including death.