Barbara Dellinger, MA, EDAC, AAHID, IIDA, CID, who serves as interior design director and AVP in HDR’s Alexandria, VA office, has been invited to join the Center for Health Design’s (CHD) Research Coalition. Beginning in January 2013, this opportunity will be a three-year volunteer commitment. In her new role, Barbara will be responsible for using her evidence-based design expertise to write research article abstracts that will be part of an online, searchable database (called Ripple) that will help the industry achieve best possible patient outcomes by applying evidence-based design principles. She will also be part of the team reviewing research proposals under a new program called the “New Investigator Award.” Additionally, she will be involved in advocating the importance of evidence-based design to non-design groups such as those in the cost estimating or construction industry, engineering, purchasing, facility management and environmental services.
Dellinger has been actively involved with the Center for Health Design for many years, serving on advisory boards for both the Evidence-based Design Accreditation and Certification and the ASID/CHD Patient Room Design Evaluation and Research Grant. Most recently, Barbara along with Jeff Getty, healthcare principal in HDR’s Alexandria office, were invited to participate as guest speakers at Georgia Tech’s Evidence-based Design Symposium called “Knowledge turned into buildings – Impacts of architectural research on practice,” where they will highlight the Fort Belvoir Community Hospital project.
The CHD is a research, education and advocacy organization of healthcare and design professionals that is leading a quest to improve the quality of healthcare through transforming the built environment. The objective of the Research Coalition is to create, promote, fund and disseminate research that contributes to therapeutic, safe, efficient, and effective healthcare setting.