“Healthcare's margins are pretty tight,” says Mills. Therefore, getting the funds to properly renovate an interior can be challenging. “It's a tough industry,” but JLL, due to its size, has access to buying consortiums that can lessen the cost of such changes.

Still, correctly managing a healthcare space is about more than aesthetics. Mills says it can also help prevent hospital-acquired infections, which have become a major controversy in the US. Each year, about 700,000 infections occur in American hospitals, and cause roughly 65,000 deaths.

Until quite recently, these infections were considered unavoidable. But in the past few years, some healthcare experts discovered that a more orderly environment, coupled with seemingly simple procedures, like more hand washing, stops infections and sends death rates plunging.

Many infections occur in clinical settings, such as surgery, but the overall physical environment is also important. “That's my world,” says Mills. Until joining JLL in September, he was director of engineering for The Joint Commission, an independent nonprofit that evaluates and accredits more than 19,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the US, including more than 10,300 hospitals.

“We have hospitals that are 50, 60, 70 years old,” he says, and many simply don't have truly up-to-date ventilation systems, a critical factor in preventing inspections. Furthermore, “a hospital can employ the best medical staff around, but that can be overshadowed when patients come in to find paint chipping off the wall or a leaky pipe in the bathroom; it sends a certain message about the administration's attention to detail.”

And those problems can also send a message to staff, and result in sloppiness. However, “when we provide a space that is clean, warm and welcoming, people are more respectful. It encourages, and ultimately leads, to better hygiene.”

CHICAGO—The term “placemaking” has become the latest buzzword in commercial real estate. It normally applies to mixed-use developments or modern offices that tenants hope will help attract and retain talent. However, many believe other facilities also need to be something other than utilitarian. Hospitals, for example, were once seen as cold, antiseptic buildings. But recent developments in the field have made it imperative that healthcare property managers increase their appeal. In fact, a new report from Chicago-based JLL shows making hospitals into a more pleasant and orderly place may save lives.

“It's different than it was twenty years ago,” George Mills, JLL's director of healthcare technical operations, tells GlobeSt.com. Publicly-available surveys such as the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers mean patients and their families can now quickly locate and compare both treatment and amenities at different facilities. “Hospitals really need to step up their game to compete.”

JLL aims to create warm, welcoming environments in any healthcare facility it manages, he adds, and as far away from an “institutional” look as possible. The lobbies are transformed into upscale areas more like a hotel than an old-fashioned hospital, and cafeterias likewise have top-notch menus.

But managers have to do more than just remake the most-public areas of a hospital. That became relatively common about ten to fifteen years ago, Mills says. And JLL has been pushing the concept into the patient care portions of its facilities. The brick-and-mortar look, straight back chairs and cold floors of past generations have been replaced by warm colors, carpeting, and comfy, lounge-like seating. And JLL has also begun experimenting with adding fireplaces to some common areas.

“Healthcare's margins are pretty tight,” says Mills. Therefore, getting the funds to properly renovate an interior can be challenging. “It's a tough industry,” but JLL, due to its size, has access to buying consortiums that can lessen the cost of such changes.

Still, correctly managing a healthcare space is about more than aesthetics. Mills says it can also help prevent hospital-acquired infections, which have become a major controversy in the US. Each year, about 700,000 infections occur in American hospitals, and cause roughly 65,000 deaths.

Until quite recently, these infections were considered unavoidable. But in the past few years, some healthcare experts discovered that a more orderly environment, coupled with seemingly simple procedures, like more hand washing, stops infections and sends death rates plunging.

Many infections occur in clinical settings, such as surgery, but the overall physical environment is also important. “That's my world,” says Mills. Until joining JLL in September, he was director of engineering for The Joint Commission, an independent nonprofit that evaluates and accredits more than 19,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the US, including more than 10,300 hospitals.

“We have hospitals that are 50, 60, 70 years old,” he says, and many simply don't have truly up-to-date ventilation systems, a critical factor in preventing inspections. Furthermore, “a hospital can employ the best medical staff around, but that can be overshadowed when patients come in to find paint chipping off the wall or a leaky pipe in the bathroom; it sends a certain message about the administration's attention to detail.”

And those problems can also send a message to staff, and result in sloppiness. However, “when we provide a space that is clean, warm and welcoming, people are more respectful. It encourages, and ultimately leads, to better hygiene.”