The NICU Neighbourhood

Abstract

This master thesis is the result of a graduation project for the master Design for Interaction at Delft University of Technology. The aim of this project was to design a concept that improves the parental experience at the Intensive Care Neonatology (ICN) at the Amsterdam UMC. The experiences at the ICN can strongly influence the parental well-being and can even lead to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Therefore, this project focused on creating a low-stress parental experience. Various researches were done to specify the values and needs that need to be addressed. This resulted in the NICU Neighbourhood. This concept contains three different elements: The Lamp, the NICU Mailbox and the Writing Wall. The Lamp embodies the ritual of arriving and leaving, and makes parents feel decisive, competent and confident. It is a non-verbal connecting element between parents and informative tool for the medical staff. The NICU Mailbox creates a moment to settle in the Single Bed Unit (SBU) and makes the parents feel knowledgeable and reassured by providing them with information and enable them to make social contact in an accessible way. The Writing Wall ensures that the name of the baby is written on the glass door of the SBU for a higher sense of ownership. Together, these elements address all needs that need to be fulfilled in order to create a low-stress parental experience.