Eastern Michigan University interior design students recently
received awards from the Nursing Home Culture Change Group
at Veterans Administration Ann Arbor Healthcare System
(VAAAHS) for proposed redesigns of the VA Extended Care
Center's dining room.
First-place winners Angela Brown and Shelli Dierck said
that the project "really hit home." Dierck's
brother is currently stationed in Iraq and family members
of the students have served in World War II, Korea, Vietnam
or the Gulf War. The placard on their design presentation, "Honor,
Respect, Integrity, Country," sums up the inspiration
that drove their desire to bring "a sense of home
to all of the people who stay at the hospital as well as
accommodate the staff," said Dierck.
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WINNING DESIGN: Eastern Michigan University
interior design students, Angela Brown (left),
a
junior from Ypsilanti; and Shelli Dierck (right),
a
junior from Milo, display part of their presentation
to
Julia Burns, chief of food production at Veterans
Administration Ann Arbor Healthcare System
(VAAAHS).
The students took first place in the design
competition for the VA Extended Care Center's
dining
room.
|
Dierck and Brown incorporated, within their design, areas
for meals, conversation, board games and computer access;
a stone fireplace and log mantle, barn wood beams, large
wood-framed teal-matted photos, and a salmon-colored carpet.
One of Dierck's most treasured moments was when her brother,
Trinity, attended the classroom presentation of her project
on the evening he flew home on leave from Iraq.
A love and respect for family and country also were driving
forces behind the second-place design submitted by Jennifer
MacLeod and Erica Noel. They both said it was a great honor
to design a space to be used by people who have devoted
their lives to defending the United States.
The VAAAHS asked that the design have a community-oriented
design with a "lodge look." Other directives
included that it meet the functional needs of 40 veterans
and visiting family and friends; employ energy-efficient
design in line with an "Energy Star" facility;
and use fire retardant and sustainable materials eligible
for Federal Government General Service Administration discounts.
An independent jury at the Department of Veterans Affairs
of VAAAHS awarded gift certificates to the three top designs
and three honorable mentions out of the 14 designs submitted
by students.
Julia Burns, chief of food production at VAAAHS, says
that VA, along with other community hospitals and nursing
homes, is aiming to improve "the quality for our residents
by providing a more home-like environment." The organization
sought to feature — in the redesign of its dining room
— the principals of the Eden Alternative, a model developed
by William Thomas that helps create a more home-like
setting within a community-oriented environment. A premise
within the philosophy is that it incorporates the help
of outside community groups and encourages people to see
environments as habitats for human beings rather than facilities
for the frail and elderly.
Burns, who recently earned a second master's degree from
EMU, told her EMU adviser, Susan Gregory, about the project
last summer. Gregory recommended Burns contact Maria Sipos,
assistant professor of interior design at EMU, and Karen
Wilmering, an EMU adjunct professor, to
see whether their students would be willing to work in
partnership with the
VA. Wilmering said the opportunity for "students to
work with real clients was very exciting...to learn about
real life design experience and more about veterans and
the war."
In the fall, students visited VAAAHS and met with staff
and patients to clarify project parameters before beginning
their design work. Eventually, the promising designers
showcased their designs in presentations at EMU classrooms
and at the VA. Burns notes that the presentations were "better
than many of the professional ones we'd seen in the past."
Sipos and Wilmering said the VA is considering future
project work for EMU students as a possible internship.
