Evaluation of a New Hospital Building's Impact on Clinical Outcomes and Consumer Experience in Medical Inpatients

Hospitals often seek to improve the effectiveness and experience of care through new building construction. However, the association between the built hospital environment, patient outcomes, and patient experience remains unclear. This retrospective matched cohort study leveraged natural experimental conditions to characterize major clinical outcomes and patient experience in medicine patients admitted to a new hospital building incorporating evidence-based design features compared with controls admitted to legacy buildings. Among patients discharged between June 1, 2019, and March 1, 2020, there were no significant differences in intensive care unit transfer, inpatient mortality, 30-day readmission, 30-day mortality, or length of stay. However, discharge from the new hospital building was associated with a higher percentage of top box scores on the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems overall hospital rating item (60% vs 76%, P = 0.02). Further studies are needed to identify specific hospital design features that influence patient experience and clinical outcomes.