2021 Virtual International Nursing Conference for Excellence in Healthcare Design

Please note the 2021 conference will now be delivered virtually, and will begin July 12, 2021. The conference theme is Local to Global Research, Design and Solutions. 

The second International Nursing Conference for Excellence in Healthcare Design follows on the heels of a successful inaugural conference in 2019 and a virtual workshop held in the summer of 2020. These events were led by Clemson University School of Nursing Director Kathleen Valentine, School of Nursing Assistant Professor Susan O’Hara, nurse executive and interior designer Debbie Gregory along with the steering committee, comprised of nurse researchers in academia and industry. This committee also co-founded the Clemson University Academy for Excellence in Design, which supports and leads the efforts of the conference.

Let's stay connected! Let's continue the health care design conversations via our LinkedIn group.  Want to be a part of our listserv? Sign up here. Send any questions to nursingconference@clemson.edu.

Conference Mission

The mission of the conference is to:

• Disseminate new knowledge obtained through research related to the effect of healthcare design on patient (family), provider and organizational outcomes
• Identify best practices for nurse leadership in healthcare design and opportunities for nurse, patient/family input into safety improvements in healthcare design,
• Stimulate innovation in healthcare design and encourage interprofessional collaboration and engagement, and
• Foster an inclusive platform for specialty design settings (global health, military health, integrative health, etc.) that expands and supports the role of nurse leaders in the design of specific specialty practices

Conference and Sponsorship Details (click once on links below to open)

• Conference Schedule

  Conference Schedule 

  The virtual conference platform will open July 12 and participants will have from then until Sept. 13 to view the pre-recorded sessions.

  July 12, 2021	Virtual conference opens Live lecture with Tim Porter-O'Grady
  July 13, 2021	Live lecture with David Allison
  July 14, 2021	Live lecture with John Maher and John Shakpeh
  July 15, 2021	Live panel with Nathan McNeese on AI and Healthcare Design Live panel - “Disasters, Communicable Diseases, and Pandemics: Impact on Healthcare Design.”
  September 13, 2021	Live State of the Science Panel Live Q&A session with all presenters from the conference The virtual conference will close on this date.

• 2021 Conference Keynote Speakers

  Tim Porter-O’Grady, DM, EdD, ScD(h), APRN, FAAN, FACCWS

  Tim Porter-O’Grady has been involved in health care for 48 years and has held roles from staff nurse to senior executive in a variety of health care settings. Tim is currently senior partner of an international healthcare consulting firm in Atlanta specializing in health futures, organizational innovation, conflict and change, as well as complex health service delivery models. He is noted for his work on professional governance models, clinical leadership, conflict, innovation, complex systems, and health futures. As Professor of Practice and leadership scholar at Arizona State University, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, he co-lead the implementation of the new Masters, PhD and DNP tracks in Health Innovation. He was also Clinical Professor and Leadership Scholar at the Ohio State University College of Nursing in the DNP program and is currently a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board and a clinical professor at Emory University, School Nursing, Atlanta, GA. Porter-O'Grady holds graduate degrees in clinical leadership, 2 earned doctorates; one in learning behavior and a second in organizational and systems leadership. In addition, he received a Doctor of Science degree, honoris causa, from the Medical University of Ohio. He is multi-board certified as a nurse executive; and advanced practitioner (APRN-CNS) in gerontology, and as a board certified wound specialist. Tim is also certified by the Georgia Supreme Court’s Office of Dispute Resolution as a registered mediator and arbitrator. He is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and is a clinical Fellow in the American College of Clinical Wound Specialists. He practices in the Mercy Care Street Medicine Program in Atlanta.

  David Allison, FAIA, FACHA, NCARB

  David Allison is an Alumni Distinguished Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in Architecture + Health. His teaching, research and scholarship involve the study of relationships between health, healthcare and the built environment. He is a founding member and Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Architects [ACHA], serves on its Board of Regents and received its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. He was selected in 2007 as one of “Twenty Making a Difference” by Healthcare Design Magazine and identified again in 2009, 2010 and 2012 as “one of the most influential people in healthcare design.” Design Intelligence Magazine named him one of the nation's 30 Most Admired Design Educators in 2013-14 and again in 2019. He was also recognized as the Center for Health Design 2019 Changemaker.

  John Maher

  John joined MASS in early 2014 and spent two and a half years working in MASS' Kigali office, and is now based in Chicago. John has led design teams on two hospital projects currently under construction in Rwanda, Munini and Nyarugenge District Hospitals, and most recently New Redemption Hospital in Caldwell, Liberia. John has managed and led design teams and consultants through complex projects in healthcare, education and community development across Africa, South Asia, and North America. John is a visiting professor at Washington University in St. Louis teaching design studios centered around community health in North St. Louis with a focus on community engagement. Prior to joining MASS, John was awarded two Public Service Center Fellowships from MIT for water, sanitation, and hygiene projects in Tamale, Ghana. John received his Master of Architecture from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis.

  John Shakpeh

  John Kuoh Shakpeh is the Nursing Services Director at Redemption Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia. Previously he served as Nursing Administrator, and in his role managed nurses at the Seventh Day Adventist Cooper Hospital from 1992 – 1996. He served as operating theater supervisor from 2002 to 2006; Assistant Nursing Director from 2006 to 2015; and Nursing and Midwifery Director for the Redemption Hospital. John worked with UNOPS to design the Integrated Severe Infection Treatment Unit at Redemption Hospital following the Ebola outbreak and also worked with MASS Design to design the new Redemption hospital. John qualified as a professional Nurse from the Tubman National Institute of Medical Arts 1984; and obtained Diploma in nurse anesthesia from the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital in Enugu and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Mother Patern College of Health science 2012.

  Nathan J. McNeese

  Dr. Nathan J. McNeese is an Assistant Professor and Director of the Team Research Analytics in Computational Environments (TRACE) Research Group within the division of Human-Centered Computing in the School of Computing at Clemson University. His research interests focus on human-centered artificial intelligence (AI) and human-AI teaming. He currently serves on multiple international/societal program and technical committees, in addition to multiple editorial boards. He is a member of the National Academies of Science Panel on Human Factors Science, and previous member of the Army Research Lab HERD Technical Advisory Board. His research has received multiple best paper awards/nominations and has been published in peer-reviewed venues over 65 times. In addition, he has acquired over $8M in research funding from agencies such as NSF, ONR, AFOSR, and AHRQ.

• Additional Conference Highlights

  A featured panel on AI, Healthcare, Nursing, and Design led by Nathan McNeese, Ph.D., assistant professor and director of the Team Research Analytics in Computational Environments (TRACE) Research Group within the division of Human-Centered Computing in the School of Computing at Clemson University.

  A State of the Science panelists:

  Michelle Trott

  Armed with a passion for healthcare architecture, coupled with a commitment to mentorship and community involvement, Michelle Trott has devoted her career to improving the well-being of the people who occupy the spaces and communities she designs.  Throughout her career, Michelle has produced consistent and significant contributions to healthcare through her work, and the study and implementation of the best healthcare design practices.  Her enthusiasm and passion are evident in every endeavor she takes on. Michelle is a LEAN Six Sigma Green Belt, and serves on numerous boards including RGHA TWIG, and the NYS Regional Code Board.  She is an active member of the AIA Rochester Chapter, and was recently selected to serve on the AIA Academy of Architecture for Health Board as a leader in codes.

  Lori Stanley, DNP, MSM, R.N., NEA-BC, CENP

  Lori Stanley brings more than 30 years of experience in healthcare and currently serves as the Chief Nursing Officer at Greenville Memorial Medical Center and Vice Chair of Nursing Academics for Prisma Health- Upstate in Greenville, South Carolina. Clinically trained in adult critical care and emergency nursing, she has had the opportunity to hold various nursing leadership roles. Prior to her arrival to Greenville,  she served as CNO at IU Health University Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana. Her experiences primarily have been served in the adult setting with seven years in the stand-alone children’s health care arena. She has had the pleasure to serve as the Director of Emergency Services for 5 distinct Emergency Departments in the State of Florida. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pa, Dr. Stanley earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Pittsburgh, a Masters in Management from Florida Institute of Technology, and a Doctorate in Nursing Practice from Florida State University. Her doctoral work focused on nurse staffing and patient acuity. She has had the pleasure to serve on several AONL committees as both chair and co-chair. She is certified as an Advanced Nurse Executive and Certified as an Executive in Nursing Practice. She has served on the Board of Directors for the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, is a Past President of the Florida Organization of Nurse Executives, past president of the Tampa Bay Organization of Nurse Executives and has served as faculty with various colleges of nursing.

  Brenda McDermott, MSN, EDAC

  Brenda McDermott serves as the Clinical Lead, for the Defense Health Agency [DHA] Facilities Division. McDermott is responsible for developing and sustaining the DoD space planning criteria, space templates and the Space and Equipment Planning System (SEPS), and Appendix A Behavioral Health Design, of the UFC 4-510-01. Ms. McDermott represents DHA as a member of The Facility Guidelines Institute, Health Guidelines Revision Committee (2015 to present) and is on the Editorial Board of the HERD Journal. Prior to joining DHA in 2013, Ms. McDermott held the position of Senior Clinical Planner, at the U.S. Army Health Facilities Planning Agency for 11 years. With experience as a licensed family nurse practitioner, Ms. McDermott has provided clinical planning and design input on DoD projects throughout the U.S. and overseas, to include medical centers and hospitals, ambulatory care and surgery centers, behavioral health facilities, National Intrepid Centers of Excellence satellite clinics, dental, and veterinary facilities.

  Erin Clark, RN MS EDAC 
  

  Erin Clark is a Registered Nurse, Clinical Operations Specialist and Transition Planner with over 15 years of healthcare experience.  As a Transition Planner, Erin has worked with over 30 hospitals and healthcare facilities as they transitioned and activated new hospitals and healthcare facilities. Using this experience, Erin founded ClarkRN and has developed a strategic approach to ensuring efficient clinical operations when planning new healthcare environments. Her role as the clinical specialist ranges from programming, design, technology planning, interdisciplinary and specialty-specific operations planning, transition planning, activation and post activation analysis. Working with a wide range of healthcare institutions across the US, Erin has a unique perspective, set of tools, and lessons learned to bring to the front end of planning and design as organizations create innovative care delivery solutions in a competitive healthcare market.

• Conference Sponsors

  NHDC 2021 Sponsors 

  Atreo

  Ecore

  IFMA

  Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design

  The McMorrow Reports/Healthcare

  Modular Services Company

  SSR

• Sponsorship Opportunities

  We have multiple sponsorship opportunities available. Download the sponsorship levels packet here. Please contact nursingconference@clemson.edu if you are interested in becoming a sponsor.
• The Clemson University Academy of Nursing for Excellence in Design and Conference Steering Committee

  Kathleen Valentine, Ph.D. MS, RN

  Dr. Valentine has been a leader in nursing with a focus on population health, rural sites, and diverse populations. Her scholarly focus has been centered on the study of human caring within healthcare systems and its relationship to cost, quality, and satisfaction outcomes. Dr. Valentine is currently leading research efforts in the re-design of healthcare services for the aging population in both rural and urban settings. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Susan O’Hara, Ph.D., MPH, RN

  Susan O’Hara, PhD, MPH, RN is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing. She was appointed following a post-doctoral faculty position with the Schools of Nursing and Architecture, and as a Clemson University School of Health Research embedded scholar. Dr. O’Hara provided critical, emergent, and outpatient care and management before founding O’Hara HealthCare Consultants, LLC. and has led teams of computer simulation engineers and architects planning over 40 health care design projects. Her current research is focused on Macrocognition in the Health Care Built Environment (mHCBE) – how the layout of an ICU affects interprofessional cognitive adaptation to com¬plexity, patient care quality and safety, and design; as well as the research around the relationship between community health nursing and home assessment. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design, the chair of the Inaugural International Nursing Conference for Excellence in Healthcare Design: History, Design, and Innovation conference (August 2019), and has led the development of the certificate program with David Allison, under the direction of Dr. Kathleen Valentine.

  Debbie Gregory, DNP, RN

  Dr. Debbie Gregory is a national leader in healthcare design, innovation, and trans¬formation. As a nurse executive and interior designer, Dr. Gregory is passionate about “Intentional Design” that aligns People, Place, and Process. She creates and transforms environments into functional ecosystems using complex systems science and strategic thinking. Dr. Gregory has Doctorate of Nursing Practice in Health Innovation and Leadership with a focus on clinical transformation and reengineering the care delivery model of the future. She is the co-founder and past president of the Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design (NIHD) and current President of the Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design Foundation. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Jaynelle Stichler, DNS, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE, FAAN

  Jaynelle F. Stichler is Professor Emerita of Nursing at San Diego State University, founding Co-Editor of HERD Journal, and founding member of NIHD. Dr. Stichler has experience as a healthcare executive and nurse consultant in the healthcare design industry and has consulted with over 150 hospitals nationally and internationally. Dr. Stichler has a passion for the built environment, the clinical voice, and the dissemina¬tion of design research. She spanned the boundary for the clinical voice to be present at the design table and paved the way for nurses to develop a vital role in the design and construction of the healthcare environment. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Joyce Durham RN, AIA, EDAC

  Joyce Durham is the Principal and Senior Clinical Advisor at SmithGroupJJR, and has 30 years of clinical, healthcare consulting, and architectural experience. Her areas of expertise include clinical planning, needs analysis, operational planning, programming, master planning, design support, and post-occupancy evaluation. She is committed to using the physical environment to positively impact the delivery of care particularly in the areas of safety, efficiency, and patient and staff satisfaction. Durham is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Yolanda Keys, RN, MSN, DHA, NE-BC, EDAC

  Dr. Keys is an associate professor for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Leveraging her past experiences as an In-tensive Care Unit nurse, nurse manager and nursing director, she teaches leadership concepts and is using her work with nurse leaders to prepare students to be informed contributors to decisions related to the nurse work environment. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Kathy Okland, RN, MPH, EDAC

  Kathy Okland has been a nurse for decades and in diverse roles. Kathy is the Past President of the Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design (2015), member of the Northwest Organization of Nurse Executives and serves on the Ed¬itorial Advisory Board for the Health Environments Research and Design Journal (HERD). As Co-Editor and contributing author for “Nurses as Leaders in Health¬care Design: A Resource for Nurses and Interprofessional Partners” Okland bridg¬es the clinical and business case for healing environments to enhance the human experience and drive performance outcomes. Kathy is employed by Herman Miller Healthcare as a Senior Healthcare Consultant. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Susan Silverman, MSN, MBA

  Susan has over 35 years’ experience in healthcare and is highly skilled in the plan¬ning and design of healthcare projects. She is a Vice President at Blue Cottage of CannonDesign, a global architectural firm where she focuses on strategic planning, business model innovation, care model optimization, operational planning, operational optimi¬zation, and functional and space planning. Susan is also on the board of the New York Society for Health Planning and CANCER101. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Christine Staples, RN

  Christine Staples is a Clinical Planner with the Defense Health Agency (DHA). She also has additional experience as a Facility Planner with the Army Health Facil¬ity Planning Agency (HFPA). Prior to her work with the Military Health System (MHS) Christine gained extensive experience as an RN. Most recently, she worked in the Perioperative setting as an RN circulator. Other nursing experience consists of Med. Surg., ICU and Home Healthcare to include Hospice care. She also served in the Navy as a Fleet Marine Force Corpsman with the Marines at Camp Pendle¬ton. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Terri Zborowsky, PHD, MSc, RN

  Terri Zborowsky was a former registered nurse in Canada prior to getting her BID (University of Manitoba), MSc and PhD in Interior Design from the University of Minnesota. She is the Research Co-chair of the Nurs¬ing Institute for Health Care Design (NIHD) and teacher specialist in the Healthcare Design & Innovation Certificate at the University of Minnesota. She is currently a Design Researcher at HGA Architects and Engineers. She has published book chapters, peer reviewed articles and has a list of both national and international presentations all dealing with the impact the built environment has on users of healthcare facilities. She is also a founding member of the Clemson University Academy of Nursing Excellence in Design.

  Jennie Evans

  Past-President of the Nursing Institute of Healthcare Design and award winner of the HCD 10 in 2014, Jennie is passionate about the health of environments in cities, homes, and workplaces. Her healthcare career has ranged from pediatric intensive care nursing, planning, design and activation project manager, design strategist and planner at a leading architecture firm and a health designer for population health. She is the current National Director of Business Development at Mazzetti, an international engineering firm where she develops strategies for MEP and other services such as technology and sustainability to improve the quality of workplace environments.

  Susan E. Ziel, BSN MPH JD

  Susan is a health care coach and consultant with Integrity Health Strategies which allows her to use her 40+ years of experience as a registered nurse, nursing administrator, consultant and health care attorney. Susan serves as Secretary on the Board of Directors of the Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design (NIHD). She has completed the Health Care Design and Innovation Certificate Program at the University of Minnesota where she also serves as Affiliate Faculty with the School of Nursing and teaches the Health Care Law and Ethics course in the Health Services Management Program. Susan also serves as an Adjunct Professor with Clemson University’s School of Nursing.

  

  Brenda McDermott, MSN, EDAC

  Brenda McDermott serves as the Clinical Lead, for the Defense Health Agency [DHA] Facilities Division. McDermott is responsible for developing and sustaining the DoD space planning criteria, space templates and the Space and Equipment Planning System (SEPS), and Appendix A Behavioral Health Design, of the UFC 4-510-01. Ms. McDermott represents DHA as a member of The Facility Guidelines Institute, Health Guidelines Revision Committee (2015 to present) and is on the Editorial Board of the HERD Journal. Prior to joining DHA in 2013, Ms. McDermott held the position of Senior Clinical Planner, at the U.S. Army Health Facilities Planning Agency for 11 years. With experience as a licensed family nurse practitioner, Ms. McDermott has provided clinical planning and design input on DoD projects throughout the U.S. and overseas, to include medical centers and hospitals, ambulatory care and surgery centers, behavioral health facilities, National Intrepid Centers of Excellence satellite clinics, dental, and veterinary facilities.

  Dina Battisto, PhD, M.S., M.Arch, B.Arch
  Dina is Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at Clemson University where she teaches fluidly across the professional degree program, the Architecture + Health Concentration, and the interdisciplinary research degree programs. She is also the coordinator of the Built Environment and Health concentration area in the Planning, Design and Built Environment Ph.D. Program in the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities. Dr. Battisto is a recognized expert in the area of Post Occupancy Evaluations and has developed facility evaluation methodologies and modular toolkits for clients worldwide. She has conducted single site facility performance assessments and cross-case comparisons across various healthcare settings.