From medical planning to spatial design: enhancing patient experience in Chinese public hospitals

Purpose Significant advances have been made in medical technology in Chinese healthcare institutions. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of inpatient living environments. Reduced hospital admissions have led to decreased revenue, thus prompting renovations for safer and more welcoming spaces. Owing to its high costs and complex scheduling, this study aims to optimize hospital interior space renovation. Design/methodology/approach Using depthMapX, DIALux and SketchUp, three enhanced spatial models (structure, lighting and color) were created for the selected hospital. A VR-based experiment was conducted with 48 former inpatients (4 groups, 12 each), who completed a five-item Light and Color Questionnaire; their task completion time was recorded. Findings Kruskal–Wallis tests and pairwise comparisons showed that the lighting-optimized model significantly improved wayfinding, safety and procedural familiarity compared to the baseline model. The structured model also showed positive effects, whereas color had the least impact. The findings provide practical guidance for Chinese public hospitals on implementing affordable interior design renovations to help restore trust among resident patients and promoting faster recovery in an enhanced environment. The study also provides an evidence-based framework for affordable hospital renovations that integrates medical planning with spatial design. Future studies are recommended to extend multisite validation and digital integration. Originality/value Diverging from prior research centered on clinical workflows and infection control, this study uniquely tackles the post-pandemic imperative of restoring inpatient trust and expediting recovery amid fiscal constraints, by synthesizing psychological perception with physical spatial renovation.