Healthcare Design - September 2018 - 47

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I N G O O D C O M PA N Y
Several of the 2018 ASID Fellows work in
healthcare design, speaking to this industry's
growth and influence
By Debra Levin

F YOU'RE FORTUNATE, your career
is peppered with a few special moments and milestones that link
your years together and celebrate
your work. In my life, I've been
blessed with more than my share
of these moments. The latest was
this July when I was inducted as
an Honorary Fellow in the American Society of
Interior Designers (ASID) College of Fellows.
Each year, ASID bestows the titles of Fellow
or Honorary Fellow to individuals who demonstrate outstanding service and contributions to
the society, the profession, and the interior design industry. It was a happy and unforgettable
event, and I'm proud of this honor.
I'm also proud that healthcare was so well
represented at the ASID National Awards ceremony held in Washington, D.C., as almost all
those inducted (seven Fellows and two Honorary Fellows) had some tentacles in the world
of health and wellness. Additionally, Jane
Rohde, principal of JSR Associates Inc., who
has worked tirelessly for decades as an advocate for more diverse and humanistic spaces
for seniors, received ASID's annual Design for
Humanity award. Paul Scialla was recognized
with the Design for Innovation award for the
creation of the International WELL Building Institute. For ASID, an organization that's
broadly focused across multiple design sectors,
these numbers are impressive and telling of
how much the healthcare design industry has
grown and how many lives and careers are being touched by the body of work.
As the award ceremony was coming to an end,
master of ceremonies Reed Kroloff, principal
of Jones/Kroloff, noted that for many people,

awards are a pinnacle, the period at the end
of a sentence. But for those who had received
honors that night, they were merely a comma,
a moment to pause and reflect before tackling
the next set of challenges.
This is what I love so much about our industry-it's made up of an army of individuals who
are driven by a passion and a calling, not a paycheck. People who are dedicated to using their
careers for the betterment of the lives of millions of people they will never meet and solving serious and significant social problems and
safety issues using design and space as tools.
There's not an end point; rather, just the next
set of interesting challenges. It's a community
of people of which I'm proud to be a part.
This industry has a long history of taking on
social issues and solving complex problems
through design. Among the issues we're currently facing are a growing population with behavioral health issues, the safety of an already
challenged work force, and ongoing uncertainty tied to the future direction of healthcare reform. What we do know is that design can be the
impetus for change and improvement and that,
as a community, we'll continue to find innovative solutions that contribute to positive health
outcomes and improve the experience for patients, families, and staff. 
Debra Levin is president and CEO of The Center for
Health Design. She can be reached at D L E V I N @
H E A LT H D E S I G N . O R G .

SEPTEMBER 2018

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Healthcare Design - September 2018

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