Jane Bringolf, Author at - Page 59 of 109

Universal Design, Health and Ageing: A checklist

The most well-known guide for ageing populations is the World Health Organization’s Age Friendly Cities and Communities. This, and similar guides, focus on “active ageing” or “positive ageing”. They aim to counter the “burden” view of older people which tends to focus on ill-health. But good health and design are closely linked. The Center for Health Design has joined the dots on universal design, health and ageing and created a checklist.

The Center for Health Design‘s checklist focuses on design features specific to older people. This checklist differs from others as it includes the health care aspect and takes a universal design approach. The checklist is not a list of comprehensive specifications, but a “thought starter”. It is best used to guide the discussion of design teams at the outset of a project. The checklist covers Home and Community including residential, Healthcare and design of clinics and emergency rooms, and Workplace designs and strategies.

The checklist matrix lists the strategy or goal, design considerations for the built environment, and the universal implications. It includes ageing in place, active living, hospital at home, hospital design, and promoting healthy lifestyles.

The checklist has a comprehensive reference list to support the content. An extract from the checklist is below.

Adaptable Housing Guide – 6th edition

Your Home is in its 6th edition (2022) published by the Australian Government. It has a section on the livable and adaptable house. This guide is especially helpful for home renovations and modifications as well as new builds.

Accessible, universal design features for all housing are in the 2022 edition of the National Construction Code. These features are similar to the Livable Housing Design Guidelines Silver standard. However, Your Home Guide is yet to catch up with the recent changes to the National Construction Code’s Livable Housing Design Standard.

The old Adaptable Housing Standard (AS4299) continues to be referenced alongside the Livable Housing Design Guidelines. The Adaptable Standard has elements similar to the Gold standard in the Livable Housing guide. However, some elements and design ideas are outdated in this 1995 standard.

The web version is easy to navigate and covers every aspect of design including adaptation to climate change. It can also be purchased in hard copy.

There are many detailed diagrams to help explain design features and floor plans. The chapter makes distinctions between liveable and adaptable designs. Drawings and floor plans provide sufficient information for designers, renovators and homeowners alike.

From the introduction:

Many of the homes we build today will still be in use in 50 or even 100 years. Ensuring our homes are both liveable and adaptable is a key challenge for all communities.

Liveability means ensuring our homes are comfortable, healthy, efficient and connected to the community. But it also means the home is functional, safe, secure and attractive for current and future occupants.

Adaptability means that our homes can cope with changes to our households and to the climate. Making homes that are flexible, adaptable, and resilient helps us to respond to both predicted and unexpected change. It also means that we limit our environmental footprint to ensure that our communities remain sustainable.

CUDA’s Livable Housing Design Course

Get up to speed with this online course which is provided on licence from the Australian Building Codes Board and endorsed by the Building Designers Association of Australia. It covers everything from different ways to achieve a level entry, bathrooms and toilets, to doors and corridors.

Inclusive mobility systems: A framework

Transportation systems are more than buses and bus stops, or trains and stations. They consist of infrastructure, customer service, regulations, and system organisation. Taking a universal design approach is a good way to frame and achieve inclusive mobility systems.

The chart below shows the conceptual framework for inclusive mobility. It was used as the basis for a research project.

The 7 Principles of Universal Design are translated into mobility and transportation language. Different sectors have responsibility for these components: government, private, academia, and advocacy groups. The title of the article is, Composing a Conceptual Framework for an Inclusive Mobility System. The article goes into more detail of the various components of the system. The final table identifies eight inclusive components:

1. 1. Vehicle equipment
  2. Environment
  3. Trip management
  4. Assistance
  5. Operational organisation
  6. Regulations and standards
  7. Awareness raising
  8. Funding

It is good to see the practical application of the Principles of Universal Design in relation to inclusive mobility. This framework brings components together nicely.

From the Abstract

This paper addresses the question how a future mobility system can be accessible to everyone regardless whether or not they have a disability. The purpose of a conceptional framework is to show how to design and organise an inclusive mobility system.

The research question is based on the seven Principles of Universal Design”, the “UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities” as well as on the UN goals on sustainable development. These theoretical principles on inclusion and inclusive design are transferred to the interdisciplinary concerns of spatial planning.

The identified accessibility and mobility requirements of individuals with disabilities are assigned to the roles and responsibilities of government, the private sector, academia and civil society and advocacy groups.

This approach identifies innovative solutions that constitute an inclusive mobility system by considering technology and non-technological driven aspects. Eight inclusive components (called i components) for the future design and organisation of an inclusive mobility system are formulated: i-Car, i-Environment, i-Ride, i-Assist, i-Organize, i-Code, i-Image and i-Funding.

Handbook for accessible graphic design

Graphic design covers all kinds of creative design and visual communications. The accessibility of graphic design should always be considered in the production of websites, brochures or Word documents. Fortunately there is a great handbook for accessible graphic design to help.

Graphic design covers creative design, visual communications, applied design and technology sectors. The text covers typography, digital media, web accessibility, Office documents, accessible PDFs, print design, environmental graphic design, colour selection and more. It’s relatively easy to read and has a logical structure. At the end is a list of publications, links to websites and tools to help.

There are so many little things that graphic designers can do to make their creations more accessible. The guide shows how to make graphic creations accessible with little, if any, extra effort. The title of the guide is, AccessAbility 2: A Practical Handbook on Accessible Graphic Design, and comes from Ontario, Canada.

Beginning with some questions…

How do we plan a graphic design project to ensure it is as accessible as possible for the intended audience? What considerations do we need to make for accessibility across various media? And how does our desire to communicate effectively with people of varying abilities translate into specific design decisions?

This book is for a broad group of individuals, including professional graphic designers, clients, educators, students and many others.

Going for Gold but Silver will do for now

At last! The national Building Ministers’ Meeting agreed to change the building code to mandate accessible features in all new homes. This represents a major social change in Australia. While evidence showed that Gold level of Livable Housing Design Guidelines was the most cost effective, Silver will do for now. However, there is still work to do.

The building ministers were not unanimous in their decision. The Communique released after their meeting gives states and territories discretion in applying the changes. It states, “Each state and territory will be free to determine whether and how the new provisions will be applied in their jurisdiction to minimise the regulatory impact on the construction sector.”

WA, NSW and SA do not support the changes. That means they will not adopt them in their state based legislation – at least, not right away. Queensland and Victoria are keen to get going with the new legislation.

Potentially, the property industry will find it inconvenient to work with differing codes across jurisdictions and decide to conform regardless. But that will mean longer time frames before full implementation. It also means more confusion for everyone.

So, from October 2022, those states that support the changes will have new homes designed to Silver level. A voluntary guide for Gold will be developed to encourage the industry to go beyond minimum. This will be a better match for the old adaptable housing standard AS4299 for those who want to go beyond minimums.

Who said what to the CRPD Committee about housing

The international Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disability asked Australia some important questions about accessible housing. The answers depend on who you ask. The Australian Government indicated it was doing OK. Australian Human Rights Commission said a lot more needed to be done, including regulation. The Australian Civil Society Report, which provides the perspective of people with disability, said aspirational targets by industry haven’t worked, so it has to be mandated.

Australian Network on Universal Housing design has more detail and links to the various documents: Who said what to the CRPD Committee about Australia’s lack of accessible housing.

The advocates

The Australian Network for Universal Housing Design (ANUHD) led the campaign for change for almost 20 years. ANUHD is a national network of committed volunteers who meet via Zoom every month. Dr Margaret Ward’s leadership and determination were instrumental to the campaign’s success. Her many letters over many years to politicians and others in power positions eventually paid off. Make no mistake, this change was not given willingly. And that is the never-ending story of all human rights campaigns.

The success of the campaign is also due to the recent push by the Summer Foundation and their financial support for extra research and a campaign director.

CUDA has actively supported the campaign and congratulates all involved. This issue has been a regular feature across the six years of this website. If you are interested in the history, the section of this website on Housing Design Policy has several posts. Universal Design in Housing in Australia: Getting to Yes, by Dr Ward provides an history of the campaign and the barriers advocates faced.

Architects and empathy: the key to inclusive design

Loughborough University has a good track record for inclusive design research. The latest article reports on a study to find out if “empathetic modelling” could influence architects’ design thinking. Impaired vision and manual dexterity are the most common losses as people age. So these factors were used in the study to improve architects’ empathy and understanding of users.

The method involved using glasses and gloves that simulate loss of vision and loss of hand dexterity. Participants were given reading, writing and dexterity tasks while wearing the gloves and glasses.

The results show that the tasks challenged their traditional view of disability. Participants began to see it more as a continuum and effecting a wider population. The key themes are summarised below.

Key themes

- - Inadequacy of the current building standard, Access to and Use of Buildings. It only recommends minimum access standards.
  - There is no incentive for developers to go beyond minimum compliance.
  - Developers often commission design briefs so the end user is often unknown.
  - In the absence of knowing their end user, they tend to design for themselves.
  - They feel there is a stigma associated with accessible designs and this reinforces the disability-centric concept of able bodied versus disability designs.
  - It challenged their traditional view on disability and capability loss and the current polarised view within design, between ‘able-bodied’ and ‘disabled-users’.
  - A lack of inclusive design training within their undergraduate and post graduate training and a desire to include more in their continuing professional development.
  - Participants felt strongly that commercial, accessible design decisions, mainly addressed physical impairments.
  - All participants reported an increased awareness of the psychological effects of the simulated capability loss, reporting frustration and fatigue.

The title of the article is, How ‘Empathetic modelling’ positively influences Architects’ empathy, informing their Inclusive Design-Thinking. Arthritis is rarely recorded as a disability but it affects one in seven Australians. Opening packages, lifting the kettle and turning door knobs can be difficult and painful.

Abstract

Empathy is described in the literature as being the first stage in the Design-Thinking cycle. Architects and Design professionals should ‘Empathise’ with their users to understand their needs and gain insight into the exclusion barriers that many users face within the Built Environment.

This paper presents the results of a study conducted with a cohort of Architects, investigating whether an ‘Empathetic Modelling’ intervention could influence their intrapersonal state empathy levels and inform their inclusive Design-Thinking.

A validated empathy scale was used to measure Architects empathy levels, pre and post intervention. Visual acuity and hand dexterity were the two capability losses simulated, with participants performing common Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and two design tasks.

Results showed that all participants empathy scores increased, when comparing pre and post-test measures. This was supported with qualitative data, with results suggesting that all participants gained unique and useful insights into how they can incorporate more accessibility, adaptability and inclusivity into future designs, to reduce user exclusion within the built environment.

This increased awareness of incorporating an inclusive design philosophy, has positive implications for design professionals understanding the diverse needs of the wider user population and especially for the increasing ageing population, who want to maintain their independence and enjoy barrier-free access to the built environment.

The video below shows the gloves and glasses in action.

Adapting existing homes to be more accessible

From 2022, all new homes will be built to Silver level of the Livable Housing Design Guidelines. That was the decision by the state and building ministers last week. But what about existing homes? How will we deal with that? The Human Rights Commission published a study by Monash University on adapting existing homes to be more accessible.

The study concluded that there were two ways to increase the stock of housing that suits people with disability. One is to mandate accessible features in all new housing. That part is almost a done deal. The second way is “through some form of modification or adaptation, which may involve a substantial renovation”.

The focus of the report is on the second point – adaptation of existing stock. Renovations for home offices and multigenerational living are current examples of adaptation. The researchers wanted to see if there ways to design for flexibility and adaptation. The overall aim is to see if there is a way of improving current stock for the benefit of everyone.

Monash University carried out the scoping study titled, Adaptable housing for people with disability in Australia: A scoping study. It has three parts. The first two cover current approaches to home modifications. The third part looks at the overall housing landscape for people with disability. The authors note that designers and architects are rarely involved in discussions on how best to adapt a home. Rather, it usually requires an occupational therapist to make recommendations. Quality of life and aesthetics are rarely factored into these assessments because of funding constraints.

Ageing in neighbourhood rather than retirement villages

Older people know what they want in terms of housing and their neighbourhood. But has anyone asked them? Two researchers in Queensland have. This research came about because of serious concerns about congregate living during the COVID-19 pandemic. In their research findings, the researchers challenge the ideas of local planners. They say we need to look at ageing in neighbourhood rather than retirement villages.

The researchers found that local councils can act as a catalyst for the market to change and innovate. They propose infill developments with a mix duplexes and mid rise apartments with easy access to services. The article in The Conversation has lot of images and diagrams to illustrate their arguments. The title of the article is, Ageing in neighbourhood: what seniors want instead of retirement villages and how to achieve it.

It is time to move away from focusing on what older people can no longer do to what they can be encouraged to do. That is the healthy ageing approach. Older people know what’s best for them. Given the opportunity they can create solutions.

The table below shows the key features that make a home and neighbourhood a good place to live as they age.

The Fifth Estate has an article that extends the discussion on this topic into smart cities. The title of the article is, This is how we create the age-friendly smart city.

Australia was one of the first countries to contribute to the WHO’s age-friendly cities project, but how much has been implemented? The late Hal Kendig explains the situation in a book chapter, Implementing age-friendly cities in Australia, which can be found in Age Friendly Cities and Communities: A Global Perspective. Or you can access a similar publication on ResearchGate.

COVID re-think on retirement living

Retirement living has to factor pandemics into design now. Separation rather than isolation is the key. Much of the value of specialist retirement living is the easy access to amenities and socialisation. But the pandemic put a stop to both. The constant reminder that older people are more vulnerable to the infection was the last straw. Especially as everyone fell into the vulnerable category. Consequently, everyone got isolated from each other. But how to design for this?

Australian Ageing Agenda has an article discussing these issues. If residents have to stay home for prolonged periods, they will likely demand more space. Pocket neighbourhoods could work so that only a section needs to be cordoned off. Other ideas are:

The title of the article is, COVID-19 is shaping design of future facilities.

Homes for pandemic and post-pandemic modes

Green building and universal design have a lot in common. They both aim to improve the lives of building users. When it comes to our homes, the brave new world of working from home will no doubt stay with us post pandemic. But there is more to creating a suitable home than just adapting for work. Our homes also need to protect us in both pandemic and post-pandemic modes. Universal design has a role to play here.

An article in the Journal of Green Building tackles the issue of designing for a world where we should expect further pandemics. Public buildings, transportation, tourism, open space and events were all affected by COVID-19. Of interest here is the section on designing new homes.

Author Dirk Spennemann argues for universal design and acknowledges the slow uptake in new homes. However, future proofing requires a universal design approach so that occupants can function in both pandemic and post-pandemic mode. Spennermann goes into detail about the four conceptual spaces a home needs and uses drawings to explain. See Figure 1 below from the article. Existing housing stock is discussed in terms of retrofits. The title of the article is, Residential Architecture in a post-pandemic world. It represents some forward thinking in home design.

Abstract

COVID-19 has highlighted the disruptive, cross-sectorial effects a sudden-onset pandemic has on a globally interconnected world. A particularly insidious component is the high percentage of asymptomatic cases allowing the virus to seed undetected. The design of residential architecture will need to adapt to the new reality that COVID19 will not be the last coronavirus epidemic. This paper discusses the implications of COVID-19 for new residential construction. It argues for a containment space, separating the largely uncontrollable external environment from the internal threat reduced residential space, for a separation of visitor entertainment areas and private sleeping areas, as well as the design of a spatially separated master bedroom that can double as a self-isolation space if the need arises. The implications of this new design on existing housing stock are also discussed. The advocated concepts are novel and advance the design considerations for future residential developments.

Editor’s note: This article cites my paper, Barriers to universal design in Australian housing.

Hotels slow to provide accessibility

Not surprisingly, relatively wealthy countries have the best adapted hotels for accessibility. The US, Canada, Ireland, Qatar, Australia, Singapore and New Zealand come out top of each region’s list. That’s according to a study of Booking.com’s website of hotels. Despite government and community organisations promoting the need and benefits of inclusive tourism, hotels are slow to provide accessibility.

A study using the international Booking.com data compares continents and countries for the level of hotel accessibility. The researchers worked with a sample of 31,868 hotels in the 100 most popular tourist destinations. They found some type of adaptation in 18,368. Even in the countries with the highest levels, wheelchair accessibility is only provided in 30%. Other features are just 5% or less.

Booking.com is a popular website for booking tourist accommodation. It leads the market by having the greatest distribution of beds worldwide. In the filter search there is a section on accessibility features. However, the information is not always reliable because standards vary across international borders. Although an hotel states it is adapted or accessible there is no guarantees it is.

This is why disability groups and individuals have set up their guides to accessible and inclusive tourism. They use the personal experiences of travellers to provide the access details that matter most. Examples are Travel Without Limits, Getaboutable, Access Advisor, and TravAbility.

The title of the article is, Accessibility in Inclusive Tourism? Hotels Distributed Through Online Channels. The authors conclude that the “vast majority of the world’s hotel industry has serious deficiencies in accessibility”.

The accessible features included in the Booking.com filter search are: wheelchair accessible, toilet with grab rails, higher level toilet, lower bathroom sink, emergency cord in bathroom, Braille, tactile signs, auditory guidance. The hotels themselves provide the information on Booking.com. So, the information is not always reliable.

The Inclusive Hotels Network has published a guide for including people with hearing loss. The guide includes the business case, customer profiles, fixtures and fittings, technology, customer service and management systems.

Author: Jane Bringolf

Universal Design, Health and Ageing: A checklist

Like this: