Health care reform is a very hot topic these days. It seems you cannot turn on a national news station without hearing about this. One fact about this reform plan is that it will result in 32 million more Americans obtaining insurance coverage. In 2012 health spending in the United States was about 17.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, or GDP. This number is expected to rise unless there are significant reforms.

Healthcare facility planning will play a large part of this growth. Because so many more people will have coverage, there will likely be an up tick in the number of people seeking treatment. Statistics state that about 25 percent of consumers report that they are willing to travel to seek a medical procedure. Again, this is where healthcare facility planning and hospital construction will come into play. With more people wanting medical assistance, there will be a need for addition health care facilities.

These health care facilities, including both medical and dental facilities, are required to be built to regulations set down by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA. Healthcare facility planning professionals know these regulations and can offer the proper guidance for healthcare construction projects.

In addition, healthcare facility planning can help patients feel more comfortable. Dental or medical offices that have a clean, streamlined design provided by healthcare facility planning can help easy the anxiety that many patients experience when seeking treatment.

Healthcare facility planning, in addition to assisting construction companies to ensure the buildings are meeting regulations, can also help designers and architects create structures that assist the physicians or dentists. Work space and work flow aspects are taken into account with healthcare facility planning. This planning will ensure that the patient intake areas and waiting areas are efficient as well as comfortable for patients.

A lot of us never really give this healthcare facility planning much thought. All we want is a clean and comfortable area to receive a checkup or treatment. Next time you are in a medical office, take a look around and you will definitely see the marks of good healthcare facility planning.
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