Patient Clothing as a Healing Environment: A Qualitative Interview Study

Abstract

Patients’ emotional responses to the hospital environment can be considered as important as medical technology and equipment. Therefore, this study investigated their experiences to determine whether the pattern using hospital identity (HI) elements, a widely used design method for patient clothing in university hospitals, can affect their emotional response and contribute to healing. It aimed to identify whether controlling the motif characteristics, arrangement, and spacing in this pattern design, and the direction between motifs, could be a method to design patient clothing for healing. To investigate patients’ emotional response and suggestions for patient clothing design, an interview-based qualitative approach was used. In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 patients discharged from Kyung Hee University Hospital Medical Center (KHUMC), Seoul. The interview questions consisted of two parts. One part featured questions about participants’ emotional responses to the medical environment and their latest patient clothing experience, and the other featured questions about their emotional response to, and suggestions for, the healing expression of pattern design using HI. The results confirmed that the motif characteristics, arrangement, and spacing, and the direction between motifs, influenced patients’ positive emotions and contributed to the healing effect. Therefore, when the HI elements of a medical institution are applied in the design of patient clothing with the characteristics of a healing design, patients perceive this as providing stability and comfort. The design of patient clothing becomes a medium that not only builds the brand image of medical institutions, but also enhances the quality of medical services centered on patient healing.

Patient Perspectives Regarding Healthcare Professional Attire

“…Repeated exposure to physicians in scrubs, may have bred a sense of familiarity amongst patients that has resulted in expecting physicians to be dressed in scrubs rather than the formal office attire. Attire familiarity as a factor is comforting [ 19 ], and may explain why patients view scrubs favorably in terms of friendliness and empathy. Secondly, the local cultural milieu may also play a role.…”

Undergarment Needs and Challenges for Breast Cancer Survivors: A Qualitative Study

“…People often use fashion as emotional armor, choosing speci c styles for a sense of security. Emotional attachment to clothing can profoundly impact mood by providing familiarity and solace [13,15]. Another reason participants returned to back-closure bras is the limited adjustability of front closures.…”

Toward Public Health Wellness: Psychosocial & Physical Health in the Community

“…Patient clothing can significantly influence patient wellness in the hospital environment. This study investigated whether a pattern using hospital identity elements can affect patients' emotional responses and contribute to healing [13]. The results show that patient clothing can be a medium which enables patients to positively perceive the quality of medical services.…”

“…Fourteen manuscripts have been published on different topics related to psychological and physical health in the community (eight papers) and public health wellness (six papers). Five papers provide innovative findings in relation to psychological health and review composition features [3][4][5][6][7], three papers focus on physical health performance aspects [8][9][10], and six examine factors influencing wellness in different communities, such as employees, older adults, patients, refugees, and the public [11][12][13][14][15][16].…”