Does this sound familiar? A hospital directory was last updated in 2012. A large acrylic display celebrates a campaign from a decade ago. Installments, either physical or digital, are so familiar or underwhelming that almost every visitor walks past them without even a passing glance.
Hospitals today are far more fast-paced than they once were. As such, new patient care models have emerged. Additionally, the number of beds available for patients is growing exponentially all while visitor expectations continue to evolve. Ideally, visitors expect to easily access information that is both current and interactive, which is why interactive hospital displays are steadily replacing static ones. In other words, they expect to be able to find the information they need while standing in front of the area where they are located.
Hospitals have become more concerned with creating an experience for visitors to create during their visit to the hospital. Hospitals have created waiting areas with thoughtful designs. Hospitals have improved lighting and incorporated larger family waiting areas. Health care organizations across the country have begun to realize that wayfinding and communication throughout a facility is critical to delivering a better experience for visitors.
As soon as hospitals began implementing their own solutions for improving their delivery of patient and family centered care, static displays were viewed differently, and interactive hospital displays began taking their place.
Hospitals Used to Build Displays for Permanence
For a long time, the focus of display design for hospitals was to build permanent fixtures. Traditional hospital displays were made to stand the test of time. The majority of these displays were bronze plaques, acrylic donor recognition walls, printed directories, and large recognition pieces. Many display systems were developed based on their ability to be stable as well as because hospitals themselves have traditionally been slow-moving entities.
That being said, many traditional display formats are very effective in appropriate environments. Quiet memorials. Areas to recognize historical donors. Legacy campaigns. Spaces for reflection. Every hospital does not need a glowing touchscreen installed to each available wall surface.
Eventually, however, hospitals began experiencing an issue with how they displayed information and had little to do with the actual displays and everything to do with the building structures they were placed within.
Most Hospital Visitors Are Trying to Find Something
Hospitals are confusing buildings even for people who work there.
Many hospital visitors do not wander around a lobby simply taking a moment to appreciate how well designed an organization’s signage system is. Many have been instructed to go to oncology. To imaging. To get coffee. Or to take the correct elevator after receiving directions on the telephone 20 minutes prior, while traveling during rush hour (and being mentally exhausted) from a previous destination.
It is at this point that a lot of the static exhibits will gradually lose their ability to be noticed.
The long corridors promote travel not interaction. The printed directory is familiar just because of its visual presence. Some exhibits eventually function less as communication systems and more as architecture with which people unknowingly pass daily without actually noticing it anymore.
And, believe it or not, that includes some digital exhibits also.
Eventually a non-updated touchscreen becomes a piece of furniture.
How Hospitals Started to Mirror Public Spaces
Hospitals were beginning to look at an evolving relationship in terms of the use of interactive visitor engagement systems as well.
Hospitals were no longer looking for public facing directories that would only do one thing. They needed a directory system that would be able to update without having to physically reconstruct it. Hospitals wanted to have interactive map solutions to assist visitors navigating large hospital campuses.
In addition, they wanted to have publicly accessible solutions that would provide the ability to recognize donors on a hospital donor wall, announce events, post staff bio’s and videos, communicate from leadership, show upcoming events, share patient stories, and offer visitor assistance – all through one space.
The Best Interactive Hospital Displays Do More Than One Thing
One of the most significant changes occurring currently with modern hospitals is that public facing systems are becoming multi-purposed as well. In addition to being able to find their way around the department they are looking for, a visitor can be viewing an article about a donor who made a contribution to support that very department.
Likewise a family member waiting in the lobby can be browsing the hospital’s event calendar, viewing recent announcements from the hospital administration, reading messages about current expansion projects, hearing from hospital leaders, and learning about local community health initiatives all at once while trying to figure out where to go.
Thus, directories have evolved into communications systems while digital donor recognition has developed into storytelling. Announcements, which can often go largely ignored, are now something visitors seek out. Hospitals have become dynamic environments where visitors not only expect the versatility and ease of access, but spaces where they need it.
What Modern Hospitals Are Actually Choosing Today
Most hospitals don’t have to choose between traditional displays and digital displays.
Instead, they choose between Fixed Systems (i.e., traditional) and Flexible Systems (Digital).
In many spaces, “traditional” display options continue to be relevant. For example, in permanent recognition areas or in memorial areas, or in historical installations. However, larger healthcare systems increasingly prefer to install modular visitor engagement systems that can grow along with the health system itself, rather than having to redesign their physical space every three to five years.
Modern hospitals are moving away from treating public-facing displays as standalone objects fixed to a wall. Instead, they are transforming these spaces into integrated communication environments where patients, families, and guests can:
- Navigate Facilities: Access interactive wayfinding and campus maps instantly.
- Discover Care & Services: Learn about available clinical specialties and health initiatives.
- Recognize Staff & Donors: Celebrate exceptional caregivers and the donor support behind hospital programs.
- Stay Informed: View real-time hospital news, leadership messages, and upcoming events.
- Engage Interactively: Explore patient stories, videos, and custom multimedia content on demand.
While traditional displays capture a single moment in time, modern systems provide a flexible framework built to evolve alongside changing technology, software capabilities, and visitor expectations.
Digital Donor Recognition Software from VIP Solutions
A digital donor recognition wall can help your organization showcase and celebrate your supporters. Whether you’re a hospital, nonprofit, higher education institution, or another organization, donor recognition plays a key role in your ongoing stewardship strategies. Our software was developed specifically for celebrating your community and its donors, we encourage you to discover all the features included in our software and what sets us apart. If a donor engagement solution can support your foundation, please contact VIP Solutions for more information or schedule a demo today.
