Planning and design of children's health care facilities.

Children are not small adults, but children do live in an adult-oriented world. With few exceptions, most of the environment, as designed and built, is intended to meet the needs of adults. Children adapt and have to make do. An increasing body of knowledge is telling us, however, that the sick or injured child heals best in an environment that is unique--one that responds to the child's emotional and physical needs. A health care environment that is responsive to the needs of children and their families, as well as the caregivers, will provide a more tolerable, perhaps even more pleasant experience, for the child and family and thereby enable caregivers to provide services more easily and efficiently. The new result may well be improved outcomes and health status. As planners, designers, or caregivers, we all have a responsibility to create these special environments and help each child achieve his or her highest possible level of health.