美国认知症照料设施康复花园设计实例分析

A Case Study of Therapeutic Garden of Memory Care Facilities in the U.S.

中国不断增加的认知症老年人群对专业认知症照料设施提出了迫切需求。既有研究表明,康复花园是认知症照料设施中支持老年人身心疗愈的重要空间载体。美国认知症照料设施发展较早,在康复花园的建设和研究上有较为丰富的经验。简要回顾了美国认知症康复花园的发展历程,梳理了认知症老人对康复花园的需求与设计原则。基于对美国12所不同规模和类型的认知症照料设施康复花园的实地调研,归纳了美国认知症康复花园的规模和布局特征。结合案例花园实际使用效果,总结出了美国认知症康复花园的6个设计特色,包括:室内外空间协同设计、注重空间“自明性”设计、设置丰富的活动设施、打造多层次过渡空间、营造不同私密层级的休憩交往空间,以及鼓励老年人参与花园维护。研究结果可为今后我国认知证照料设施康复花园的设计营建提供参考。

The increasing number of people living with dementia in China has put forward an urgent need for professional memory care facilities. Existing studies have shown that the therapeutic garden is critical in supporting the physical and cognitive healing of people living with dementia. In the past three decades, the design and research on the therapeutic garden for people living with dementia flourished. This article briefly reviewed the development of dementia gardens in the U.S. and the consensus on design principles. Based on the investigation of 12 dementia therapeutic gardens of different scales and types in the United States, characteristics of scale and layout were summarized. Six effective design features were extracted from the cases: designing indoor and outdoor space together, naturally way finding design, various facilities for activities, multiple buffer zones between indoor and outdoor areas, sitting spaces of different levels of privacy, and enrolling residents in garden maintenance. The results of this study could offer a reference for the design and building of dementia therapeutic gardens in China.