Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital

Tau Diseño received in 2004, as a research project, the brief from the Hospital Virgen de las Nieves (HUVN) of Granada and the Regional Government of Andalusia to develop the wayfinding standard for hospitals aimed at people affected by some form of disability –whether cognitive or physical– or addressing the special needs of non-Spanish speaking users or illiteracy.

This work is framed within the “Design for All” (Inclusive Design) approach.

The HUVN was the perfect testing ground and an excellent research scenario, since it is a complex of five buildings (built over distinctive periods and some having been refurbished or assigned a use different to the original purpose) with one million patients to treat each year, also with the transit of family visitors, employees, partners, suppliers… and a full range of medical specialties.

Although the main target group of the project was people with disabilities or special needs, it goes without saying that the finished investigation represents a complete all-inclusive solution for all citizens as well.

The project was conceived as a complete system –rather than a collection of independent signage elements– with a fundamental objective: to create a wayfinding system that always accompanies the user through personalised resources when necessary or with silent graphic signage or conventional elements such as directories, directional and orientation signs, floor plans, etc.

The system proposed by Tau Diseño relies on resources that ensure the user is not left “unattended” at any moment in their journey to a specific place or if they need any type of information within the hospital.

To achieve this the wayfinding system developed the following elements: