On October 8, 2018, Yellow Brick’s Director of Professional Development, Lynn Aguilera, presented “Lessons Learned from Three Interdisciplinary Dress Rehearsals Before Move Day”, alongside Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital (LPCH) at Stanford’s VP of Strategic Space Planning & General Services, Jill Sullivan. This dynamic duo provided attendees of the Healthcare Facilities Symposium & Expo (HFSE), insight into how the project team successfully designed an interdisciplinary orientation & training program that met the needs of all end-users and culminated in the execution of three Dress Rehearsal events. Aguilera and Sullivan demonstrated that the Dress Rehearsal process provided department champions with the opportunity to evaluate operational plans and test new equipment and systems prior to opening. This process expedited the timely identification and resolution of potential regulatory and patient safety issues. They shared that the opportunity to spend time in the new space before opening increased staff confidence in their ability to continue to deliver the same level of exceptional patient care that sets LPCH apart.

LPCH is a welcome addition to the Northern California community, bringing state-of-the-art healthcare practices to patients and their families. Recently the facility was awarded LEED platinum certification. This makes the facility is one of only two children’s hospital’s in the world this distinction. Keeping the focus on the children, the hospital offers kid-sized equipment, virtual reality distraction therapy and thematic, colorful MRI rooms all aimed at making stay in the hospital less scary.

This is Lynn’s second time presenting at HFSE. In 2017, Lynn presented her experience activating UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay. The expo’s mission is to “… create a multi-disciplinary environment that inspires you to evoke change and the advancement of a better delivery of healthcare through the physical space.”

“The HFSE conference examines healthcare design from concept to opening day,” said Lynn. “This perspective is critical for everyone to understand how to operationalize the best healthcare facility while understanding both the limitations and importance of envisioning the future.”