Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
7457038 Health & Place 2018 8 Pages PDF
Abstract
Studies of the characteristics of therapeutic landscapes have become common in medical geography. However, there is limited analysis of how therapeutic landscapes are produced. Based upon the qualitative theoretical thematic analysis of focus group data, this study examined the spatial work carried out by healthcare practitioners in a paediatric outpatients' department, turning unsatisfactory space into a therapeutic place. The study highlights the spatial strategies employed by staff to mitigate socio-spatial deficiencies in the healthcare environment. Staff perceived the task of making space work as an integral part of their duty of care to patients and an important facet of their professional identity. This study concludes that many of the spatial aspects of health care practice are often taken for granted. However this may hide the crucial role that health professionals have in producing places that heal.
Related Topics
Health Sciences Medicine and Dentistry Public Health and Health Policy
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