Chronic Pain Management: Review of current practice against a standardised systematic approach

Conditions for providing care in healthcare are constantly changing. The demographic of the population is evolving, service institutions are expanding, and our knowledge of both disease and condition management is exponentially rising. Through the last decades, healthcare providers have become more efficient, the patients are spending less time in hospitals, and we have new and better management strategies for diseases. However, the costs for care provision are rising and will continue to rise unless we change fundamentally the way we are providing care. This abstract offers an insight into current research activity exploring the management of chronic pain in Scotland, with discussion of initial findings

Synchronicity in the Online Design Studio: A Study of Two Cases

Traditional design education models foreground place-based learning and teaching approaches that situate educators and students together in the studio. This experience enables an engaged and participatory teaching practice in which over-the-shoulder feedback and peer-to-peer critique become essential formal and informal learning interactions. However, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly interrupted the educational offerings of higher education institutions. Face to face learning ceased and rapidly pivoted to online and new remote models of delivery. For students studying design at the University of Sydney, this disruption significantly impacted the design studio – a space traditionally understood as a physical learning environment and a mode of learning and teaching. This paper presents a case study of two approaches to teaching design studio online delivered in early 2020. The first approach adopted an asynchronous delivery model in which students engaged with online materials at a time of their choosing, with assessments designed as individual tasks. The second approach adopted a synchronous delivery model in which students participated online in real-time, and assessment tasks were predominantly small-group tasks. In sharing the experiences of both case studies, this paper considers the role of synchronicity in delivering design studio online across four themes: interaction, assessment, feedback and design learning. Finally, the paper presents practice-based lessons that could inform pedagogical practices in design and support future models of design education

“I’ve become a cross-disciplinary interpreter”; Experiences of open learning within a multidisciplinary collaborative design context

Open working practices are increasingly encouraged across the domains of design, business and academia, with concerted efforts made to enable contextual learning and facilitate knowledge exchange between multi-disciplinary partners. Despite the understanding and acceptance of this way working, challenges to collaborative practice exist widely. This paper aims to explore experiences of learning within a multi-disciplinary collaborative design context. In the same way that Chesbrough (2006) considers open innovation as ‘the use of purposive inflows and outflows of knowledge to accelerate internal innovation’, this paper asks how ‘open learning’ within a multidisciplinary collaborative design context can make use of those same flows of knowledge in order to realise value for those participants engaged. Contextualised within a series of multidisciplinary design-led events in Scotland, emerging themes of learning are identified from across business, academia and design participants. Deconstructing the themes, this paper questions how design can enable wider participatory education practices, with the aim of informing the knowledge and understanding of learning within a multidisciplinary design space

Towards a Theory of Produced Design Space

While partnerships between academia and industry are recognised as potential mechanisms for improved sector agility and competitive advantage, engagement in collaborative activity can be challenging. The translation of ideological paradigms and the application of practices inherent within each discipline can hinder the creation of new knowledge. However, it is recognised that collaboration in this context is increasingly important to both industry, for economic value, and academia for impact outside research. This paper introduces produced design space as a situated context within collaborative activity and as being critical to open innovation practices, bringing together juxtaposed partners to co-create in a reciprocal and meaningful way. Produced design space is articulated as space that is enabled, created and facilitated to encourage collaboration between multidisciplinary partners, as opposed to the space of traditionally collaboration. This study first introduces the spatial triad of Lefebvre: physical, mental and lived, applying his theoretical framework in order to explore the current understanding of produced design space from both a theoretical and practice based context, supported by evidence gathered during a series of multidisciplinary collaborative design workshops illustrating the theoretical considerations in practice

Next Generation Asthma Care Position Paper

The Next Generation Asthma Care position paper sets out a collaborative research project led by the Digital Health and Care Institute (DHI) with input from Asthma UK

Immersing the artist and designer in the needs of the clinician: evolving the brief for distraction and stress reduction in a new Child Protection Unit.

Engaging clinicians in the design of new, less stressful spaces in healthcare is an interdisciplinary challenge for artists and designers. The design brief is the primary means of ensuring shared understanding and success criteria for creative projects (Press and Cooper 2003) and highlights ambitions and constraints for the project. Conventionally the brief is prepared by the client and issued to the artist or designer. This assumes that the client knows at the outset how to articulate needs and is able to envisage the outcome. Alternative processes emerging through co-design and interdisciplinary working assume the brief is developed or evolved jointly as part of the process and is focused on the experience of the user. This paper focuses on the evolution of a meaningful brief for a Child Protection Unit in NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde’s new Royal Hospital for Children. Development of the brief was driven by the art and design team and aimed at opening up mutual understanding with the clinicians. The visual mapping of dialogue between artist, interactive designer and clinicians provides a novel approach to understanding this key stage of the process. Fremantle co-ordinated the paper. Hepburn undertook the fieldwork and provided the analysis. Fremantle structured the paper and co-ordinated reviews with Hamilton and Sands

Fostering Engagement Through Creative Collaboration

Design innovation aims to tackle complex societal challenges through new design practices and bespoke methods of engagement (McAra-McWilliam, 2012). Creative collaboration is a core aspect of design innovation practice, involving diverse stakeholders including academic, business and civic partners, and importantly end users within the design process. Innovation in the health and care context requires collaboration between a variety of actors when designing transformative product and service solutions (Bradwell and Marr, 2008). Consequently, the focus of design has shifted from the artefact or outcome, to the design of an open and participative process that relies on the direct contextual insight of participants, their creativity and lived experience, and is inclusive of a multiplicity of perspectives. Experience Labs open up the design innovation process to multiple stakeholders by employing a participatory design approach. The Labs provide a space for collaboration and co-creation among a range of stakeholders and end users (French, Teal and Raman 2016). Active participation within Experience Labs requires participants to engage both with the concepts being explored, and with each other’s points of view. We discuss our approach to designing spaces for collaboration which foster engagement and participation in the creative process, among multiple stakeholders. Through examples, we discuss the tools, artefacts and activities that support participants to meaningfully engage with ideas, and strategies for curating groups and managing collaboration. We share design learning regarding engagement and the resulting impact on people, processes and outcomes, and consider how this approach may be applied in other contexts to foster engagement

Language of Pain : Merging Multiple Voices for Improved Chronic Pain Management

Language of Pain is a collaborative research project between The Glasgow School of Art/Digital Health and Care Institute and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The project adopted a design research approach to explore the experiences of people living with chronic pain and health professionals delivering care through a series of design workshops and interviews. Research methods used included visual mapping; prototyping and storytelling. The aim of this research project is to collaboratively develop insights and user requirements that support the design of an innovative assessment tool to support equal and open dialogue; promote shared ownership and understanding; and attempts to address the imbalance between the health professional and the patient through experiential learning and engagement

Digital Streets : Not Just Disability but Mobility for All

The built environment creates a number of societal challenges experienced by citizens today, particularly when considering factors such as physical or mental health, age or life-stage (Public Health England, 2015). Giles-Corte et al (2016) recognise the role for city planning in supporting the ‘liveability of cities’ and the subsequent health and wellbeing of residents, while Leyden (2003) states that people ‘who are socially engaged with others and actively involved in their communities tend to live longer and be healthier physically and mentally’. This interconnection between the built environment, community engagement and social and physical wellbeing creates a stimulating platform for a design research intervention. Across Scotland, digital technology such as Neatebox, Toilet Finder or Euan’s Guide have been developed in response to these challenges, but are often under utilised both by local authorities, health providers and the communities for which they are created. The Digital Streets Experience Lab project saw community groups, people with disabilities, Moray Council and NHS Grampian work collaboratively through a series of design-led activities to improve street accessibility in Elgin. Through Experience Labs, participants had the opportunity to engage in the design process, share insights, experience new concepts and imagine new ways of responding to these challenges (French, Teal, & Raman, 2016). The findings provided valuable insights on user experiences of the street accessibility, aspirations for the future of Elgin and knowledge of current technology. Most importantly, the project created a platform for community engagement at a local level, encouraging active involvement and working towards the liveability of Elgin city centre

Experience Lab : Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding rates in the UK continue to be among the lowest in Europe, despite evidence supporting that increased breastfeeding has the potential to improve the health of both mother and baby. In Scotland, breastfeeding rates are poor and static. Recognising that co-created, iterative methodologies, and a ‘bottom up’ approach have the potential to develop more person-centred service innovation, this project brought together end users and key health professionals to design interventions tailored to empower and motivate users. The aim of the research project was to employ a user-driven approach to develop new ways of promoting breastfeeding among new mothers and young women. Key to this aim was to identify ways in which women want to be supported the methods, models and timescales of information sharing and support provision as well as identifying how health professionals want to provide that support in practice. The project sought to develop a model of delivery that meets the needs of all groups and has a positive impact on baby feeding decision-making. The project involved a series of Mini-Labs and Experience Labs involving participation of new mothers, health professionals, health academics and young people. The Labs were designed to capture the experience and knowledge of baby feeding decision making, and identify preferred methods of support and promotion with respect to breastfeeding. The findings of the Labs illustrate the individual, social, cultural, and societal challenges around breastfeeding and the need for a collaborative approach in designing support and promotional materials tailored to meet the needs of each group. Future recommendations are suggested relating to five key areas of opportunity: exploring the care pathway, developing a single maternity service voice, developing a tailored educational programme for schools, the potential of community collaboration, and the co-design requirements of a new website