Everyone from the average interior designer to the semi-mystical purveyors of Feng Shui would have you believe that the design of your dental office can have a significant impact on the attitude of your patients. Well… you know what? They are right – if not for exactly the right reasons. In fact, it is well documented that there are several things that a healthcare office space can do to mitigate the anxiety felt by their patients.

Here are a few of the more notable ones:

• Use muted colors – Most advice in this area tends towards the beiges and the grays of the color spectrum. While this is sound advice when it comes to the majority of the space, you should also provide a complementary color wall to break up the tedium. This wall can also be customized as the seasons change – yellow in summer, teal in winter, etc. For less than a $100, you can recreate your office space every three months.
• Create a focal point – Staring at an uninteresting wall is like… watching paint dry. Instead, give your patients something interesting to look at by placing actual art or prints on the walls. These art works – whether real or simulated – can also stimulate some friendly conversation between the various people in your waiting room. It is an affordable way to help them pass the time and alleviate some of their stress adn brighten their mood.
• Include some passive interest – Some people – and by that we mean children – are not so enamored of static images sitting on a wall. For these smaller patients, a fish tanks or television set will work wonders by distracting them from the wait. The key to effectively utilizing this factor in a dental office design is to keep the TV or fish tank out of the way. In this way, the children will naturally gravitate away from the adults and both parties will be satisfied. It is truly a win-win situation.
• Add some music – There are more ways than just visual stimuli to distract a waiting dental patient. By providing some “mellow” tunes, you can not only distract them from the wait but also lower their stress level and improve their mood. Admittedly, this is a tricky task as there as many tastes in music as there are people. Still, a little musical stimulation always seems to “sooth the savage beast.”
• Provide refreshment area – Similarly, it pays to appeal to the taste buds of your patients. Providing coffee, tea, and soft drinks may not be what the dentist ordered but it does serve to distract the patients from the wait time. We recommend providing a dedicated space for this activity as it will inevitably become messy and your staff may not always be able to police it as often as is necessary.

As you can see, there are numerous ways to improve the hospitality of your dental office. It just takes some time, effort and a little careful consideration to accomplish. For more information on the process or to see how our design team can help, please contact us at HJT Dental Office Design. We can be found online at HJTDesign.com or reached directly at 866.213.1268.