Identifying Nurses’ Perception of a Lighting Installation in a Newly Built Hospital

Abstract

Prior to the installation of new integrative lighting systems, perceived experiences by nurses of the existing lighting were collected as a baseline study through interviews at two newly built hospital units in Denmark. This paper addresses the advantages and barriers that the current lighting application presents for the nurses’ work-practice. The study found that ten out of twelve of the interviewed staff at the Neurointensive Care Unit (neuro-ICU) and Postanesthesia Care Unit (PACU) prefer to work in relatively dark conditions. The interviews revealed how light and darkness are perceived as important to the staff for entraining the circadian rhythm of the patients; this was manifested in their working routines. An identification and description of nurses’ experience will guide and inform future implementation of integrative lighting systems at neuro-ICU and PACU to ensure patients’ sleep quality and recovery, improve visual comfort for the staff, enhance the degree of perceived usefulness of the lighting systems and facilitate technology acceptance. The study concludes that there is a need for implementing differentiated lighting design for the different units and contexts in the hospital, in contrast to a ‘one-size fits-all’ lighting implementation.