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The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research and/or author-ship of this article: This research did not receive any funding, but the coauthor Laura Cambra-Rufino obtained a "Margarita Salas" contract within the "Programa de recualificacion del sistema universitario espanol" funded by the Next Generation EU.
Analysis of institutional authors
Cambra-Rufino, LauraAuthorBenchmarking Relevance for Hospital Design and Planning: An International Web-Based Survey
Publicated to:Herd-Health Environments Research & Design Journal. 17 (3): 189-208 - 2024-07-01 17(3), DOI: 10.1177/19375867241239324
Authors: Viergutz, HKS; Cambra-Rufino, L; Apple, M; Heithoff, A; Lindahl, G; Capolongo, S; Brambilla, A
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Abstract
Objective: The study aims to investigate what design practitioners and healthcare facility managers deem as important benchmarking metrics worldwide, investigating country differences in benchmarking usage and which metrics are prioritized.Background: Benchmarking is a regular practice in the healthcare sector, both for clinical and managerial aspects to compare, measure, and improve standardized processes. However, limited knowledge is available about benchmarking procedures in hospital planning, design, and construction.Methods: A web-based survey was designed, revised, and pilot-tested in five countries; it was adjusted according to local experts' suggestions and submitted globally via SoSci multilingual platform to persons involved in hospital design, research, construction, and facility management. It was composed of closed questions on 5-point Likert-type scale ranking frequency or importance and open-ended questions divided into six sections. Two hundred and eighty full responses have been collected. Statistical analysis was performed via PowerBI and R-Studio, while qualitative analysis was performed via MAXQDA.Results: The findings reported allow for both specific insights per each country or category as well as enabling general considerations of a practice that is becoming always more international with 30%-50% of respondents working in the international context. The evaluation of the survey highlights the most important benchmarks, among others. For example, for respondents from the top five countries (Sweden, Spain, Germany, Italy, and the United States), the most important metric for benchmark comparability is whether the project was new construction, new construction attached to an existing hospital, or interior renovation. Construction date, client type (public vs. private), and country of location were also generally rated as the most important metrics by respondents. Other metrics that were consistently rated as important globally included inpatient unit layout, walking distances, number of floors, and whether all patient rooms are private. Space-related metrics are considered very important elements in the design and planning of healthcare facilities worldwide. Regarding cost-related metrics, all countries consider the ratio construction cost per building gross area as the most important.Conclusions: Benchmarking emerges as a relevant tool for hospital design and planning as it can support efficiency, standardization, and confidence; currently, benchmarking is still underutilized due to the challenge of international comparison, access to data outside each specific company, and variation design metrics nationally. Benchmarking strategies should be further investigated to support knowledge exchange and to ensure reliable and comparable information globally.
Keywords
Quality index
Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel
The work has been published in the journal Herd-Health Environments Research & Design Journal due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency Scopus (SJR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2024 there are still no calculated indicators, but in 2023, it was in position , thus managing to position itself as a Q2 (Segundo Cuartil), in the category Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine. Notably, the journal is positioned en el Cuartil Q3 for the agency WoS (JCR) in the category Public, Environmental & Occupational Health.
Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.
Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2025-07-23:
- Scopus: 1
Impact and social visibility
Leadership analysis of institutional authors
This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Austria; Italy; Sweden; United States of America.