Health as currency session: obstacles and opportunities in practice

Naming thresholds and making them feel more palpable. And exploring opportunities and future directions. These were the principles of the session organised by the Embassy of Health. This included Fontys Center of Expertise Health, the Province of North Brabant, knowledge organisation Vilans and network organization Alles is Gezondheid. Design Innovation Group, Buro Zorgelooser, Aline Gerards & Hedwich Hooghiemstra, Mecanoo Architects and Redesigning Psychiatry also shared practical examples and insights. “Precisely because you bring together all kinds of stakeholders in healthcare, you create a great opportunity to gain new insights,” says Mario Tedde, who was present at the session as a service designer from Vilans. “We all have a piece of the puzzle. Of course, you have to do this in a good way in order to structurally improve long-term care and health.”  

“This session helps to discuss complicated themes differently and get people thinking about them,” says Elles Breebaart of the Province of North Brabant. “Moreover, it is inspiring to look at the same challenge with other organisations and designers.”

Examples of designers

The session started with three practical examples that shed light on the explorations within the theme ‘Health as Currency’. For example, the Samen Drempels Over project by Design Innovation Group (DIG) & Volunteers Centrale Huizen with Buro Zorgelooser focuses on strengthening networks of elderly people through volunteer work. ‘At the heart of this is a toolkit that promotes equality and reciprocity and focuses on creating sustainable relationships and expanding networks. Elderly people and volunteers will work together to investigate whether and what kind of (lost) interests there are, what is happening in the neighbourhood (socially and physically)’, says Mila van Rijs, designer at DIG. 

Designer Gerjanne van Gink was present on behalf of Buro Zorgelooser. “In this project we looked for ways in which volunteers could be deployed differently. For example, it is very important how you approach the things that volunteers do. For example, there are people who do shopping every week for an elderly neighbour. They just do that because it feels good for them too. If you suddenly start calling this kind of activity volunteer work, then it immediately has a different value within our current society.”

The Publieke Stilteruimtes project by Aline Gerards & Hedwich Hooghiemstra is looking into the introduction of quiet spaces in public places. It is inspired by previous successes in nursing homes. However, the designers experience challenges in practical implementation, such as financing and maintenance. The project raises questions about the value of preventive health initiatives and social responsibility.

And Mecanoo and Redesigning Psychiatry jointly designed a specialized care unit for intensive mental health care. The focus was on creating a place where the environment contributes to people’s health and recovery capacity at all levels.

‘Caring for’ as an interaction

In three different groups, participants then engaged in different explorations defined based on a previous session. The first group discussed ‘Caring for’ as an interaction. “In our society, and specifically about health, we talk a lot in economic terms,” says Marleen. “For example, you ‘invest’ in a relationship, but these types of terms do not always allow room for the softer values ​​that come with it. But how do you give space to those values? That was talked about in this group.”

Health palpable at the decision table

Another group looked at how you can make health palpable at the decision table. In this group, the obstacles and opportunities of preventive health initiatives were analysed, focusing on the need for a shared language and joint responsibility for health. “Of course, the different authorities all work on different issues,” explains Marleen. “But very often, these issues also have consequences for health, without this actually being an official topic of discussion.”

“The larger an authority, the more abstract some themes usually become,” says Gerjanne van Gink.

Health is taken for granted in the living environment

This idea ties in with what was discussed in the third group: health as a matter of course in the living environment. Mecanoo, Redesigning Psychiatry, Fontys and Vilans joined in. This group explored how health can be integrated into the daily living environment and what the role of relationships is in this.

“When it comes to health, meeting each other and building a relationship is very important. That is always the starting point. It has a major influence on your willingness to care for each other,” says Mario. “To build a relationship, you have to be able to see and understand each other. Language plays a crucial role in this, because whether you are a healthcare professional, architect or just a local resident: you have to speak a language that everyone understands.” According to Mario, the group investigated, among other things, the importance of a zeitgeist in which developments take place. “Not everything you come up with works forever. You will therefore have to organise your living environment flexibly so that evolving insights about health and your possibly changing need for care are naturally present.”

Important themes and obstacles

You cannot simply achieve the goals of the three previous explorations. There are always obstacles. The participants named the most common obstacles and then symbolically presented in physical form. This way they literally became tangible, which helps in analysing them, Marleen believes. 

According to the creative lead, the word ‘language’ was mentioned several times as a barrier. “There is so much difference in language. For example, a designer puts something into words very differently than an authority. And even within an authority – if you want to position health – you always have to deal with different departments and therefore different jargon. In addition to being a barrier, language is of course also an opportunity because it can appeal to the imagination.”

In addition, financing, relationships, value perception, flexibility and adaptation and time and space were highlighted as themes and barriers. “That word space is very important. To create a healthier society, there must of course be room to do something, without it being closed in advance. There must be room to work together.” 

“In complex social issues, where the desire is to ‘stumble forward’, certain conditions are essential: space, relationships and language,” adds session participant Joost Boerenkamp of Alles is Gezondheid. “Without these conditions, creating a breeding ground for further steps is difficult. Space includes time and resources, but is mainly created in perception, through letting go and trust. It is an interaction process, continually making room for new possibilities. Social design offers great value here by making this space visible, palpable and tangible.”

Future directions

Mario Tedde sees the recent Embassy of Health meet-up as a great opportunity to explore collaborations. “Meeting each other is very valuable in any case and I sensed an open attitude and curiosity about each other among the completely different organizations and participants that were gathered here. For a next session, I would find it interesting if someone who is concerned with health specifically from a financial perspective would join. For example, from a health insurer. I think it would be interesting to also explore this field of tension.”

Gerjanne van Gink thinks that municipal authorities are also indispensable in these types of sessions: “For example, I would really like to see administrators of cities or villages at the table. Ultimately, many issues take place at the municipal level.”

“We will soon be talking to designers to see how design power can offer a different lens to look at these types of issues and barriers,” Marleen adds. The creative lead predicts that a next session of the Embassy of Health will also focus more on this. “It is important to show not only the end result, but especially the process. We want to present the health as a currency concept in such a way that you can learn something from it, not only as a healthcare institution. We also want to provide that broader way of looking at people who work in a department at a province that at first glance is not related to health.”

At the DDW, the Embassy of Health is creating De Wachtkamer as an exhibition concept. A place where time is not money, but rather attention. It will be an environment where we literally take the space and time to reflect and exchange with each other on the design process and embracing these soft values. Designers who participated in the article session are also invited to help shape De Wachtkamer, drawing inspiration from the ‘value’ pivotal to their project. For example, a waiting room that prioritises interpersonal relationships over an efficiency-driven transactional approach.