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DESIGNING HEALTHY HOUSING


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 * Kent
 * Division of Research & Economic Development
 * Designing Healthy Housing

Margaret P. Calkins, Ph.D., is an architectural researcher with a passion for
creating buildings that are comfortable for people in all states of health.

She is particularly attuned to the needs of the elderly, whose eyesight or
balance may be poor or who may live with dementia.

Thinking about the edges of stairs, chairs, and countertops and how they help
the elderly see and be sure-footed is part of her job. Calkins, who has
consulted for many healthcare institutions and elderly housing communities, is
coordinator of the Healthcare Design program for Kent State’s College of
Architecture & Environmental Design.



Nearly 20 years after she earned her Ph.D. in architecture from the University
of Wisconsin and began consulting for care communities, there is “a lot of work
still to be done in senior living communities,” she said. “When you think about
environmental issues for people who are not completely able-bodied or
able-minded, there are layers of approaches you can take.”


SMALL CHANGES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Sometimes, subtle changes that don’t scream “handicapped person” can make a big
difference, physically and psychologically, to elders, who may be sensitive
about their diminishing capabilities in a culture where youth and vigor are
valued.

Colorful, contemporary-looking grab bars, better ambient lighting and
contrasting colors can make a huge difference in comfort, she has found. 
“Getting people to understand the variety of things you can do that are so
helpful but don’t make it look like you’re handicapped” is part of the process
of design for this age group, said Calkins, who earned her undergraduate degree
at Kenyon College in psychology.

At Kenyon a course in the psychology of aesthetics first piqued her interest in
designing environments. She took courses at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design
and got advice from her oldest brother, who was an architect in Cambridge. She
wanted to specialize in the impact of design on people rather than design
buildings. He convinced her that she would have more credibility with an
advanced degree in architecture rather than psychology.

“I wanted to do research to give architects better information on how to design
buildings,” she said.


BASING BUILDINGS ON RESEARCH

After writing a thesis on building design guidelines for people with dementia
and earning her master’s degree in 1986, she went to work for Heather Hill, a
nursing home in Chardon, Ohio, where a prototype memory-care, assisted living
building was being planned that would rely on research-based guidelines.

She learned that the NIA was looking to fund more studies with businesses, so
while she earned her Ph.D., she also incorporated a business and began
consulting for health care communities. She has had $6 million worth of grant
funding, much of it from the National Institutes of Health, along the way. A
nonprofit research arm of her company, the IDEAS Institute, has also been
awarded foundation funding from the Alzheimer’s Association and others.

Calkins was one of the first to focus on environments for people living with
dementia. “It was a wide open door and I ran through,” she said. 

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