A New Signage and Branding Strategy Helps Visitors Better Navigate Seattle's Largest Hospital
The art and science of wayfinding takes shape as a comprehensive signage system gets implemented at Swedish Medical Center
Corbin News Release
July 31, 2000
Traverse City, MI — Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, Washington, the largest medical facility in the Pacific Northwest, recently placed the finishing touches on a comprehensive new wayfinding system to help patients and visitors better navigate its facilities. The system was developed and implemented by Corbin Design, an environmental graphic design firm based in Traverse City, Michigan. The Swedish facility on First Hill, comprising 3 million square feet, will sport the extensive collection of new interior and exterior signage throughout its 15-block main campus. Operating through Swedish Medical Center Corporate Properties, Corbin Design directed the signage makeover, working in close collaboration with The Leonhardt Group, a Seattle, WA-based brand strategy firm. Corbin Design's experience completing complex wayfinding systems for more than 50 hospitals and medical centers was the ideal match for The Leonhardt Group's experience with branded environments.
"Providing the information people need to comfortably access a medical campus of this size is critical," says Jeffrey Corbin, principal and founder of Corbin Design. "Being able to find one's way easily through the various buildings, departments and multiple levels is vital to the success of a facility of this kind."
Covering 18 city blocks, the Swedish facilities were built over time and for different purposes. The wayfinding project marks a pioneering effort to unify the Swedish campus through signage that is consistent from one facility to the next. Swedish's chief executive officer Richard Petersen initiated the project in September 1997 when he found that medical personnel were routinely being asked for directions. He set a high priority on making Swedish a more hospitable, visitor-friendly place.
"The new system reflects, reinforces, and reminds that Swedish Medical Center is the premier medical facility in the Pacific Northwest," cites a spokesperson for Swedish Medial Center.
The hospital environment posed a special challenge for the designers because the positive attributes of a hospital can sometimes carry negative associations for people. Technology and expertise, for instance, can be seen as sterile and intimidating, especially by new patients. The Corbin team's challenge was to develop a wayfinding system that counteracts negative associations through a positive brand experience.
"The new wayfinding system acts as a visible, yet subtle, reminder that the Swedish brand is friendly, supportive, and even comforting," says Ted Leonhardt, principal of The Leonhardt Group. "A positive brand message is reinforced with every visitor who easily finds their way."
The Corbin team utilized "approachable design solutions," such as oversized signs and lettering, to make the new signs reader-friendly and to extend the welcome as far out as possible with the exterior signage. Featuring Swedish blue as the predominant color and gently curved faces, the signs are both elegant and functional.
"We have worked with a number of hospitals that have had patient retention increase significantly following the implementation of a comprehensive wayfinding program," Corbin said. "When patients are polled as to why they keep coming back, I can tell you that a simple thing like providing needed information to help people find their way really improves the bottom line of these organizations."
"The technical aspects of a wayfinding system also need work synergistically with the brand's characteristics—in this case, the need for a more approachable and consistent system to help visitors find their way," adds Leonhardt. "Signage is a wonderful way to demonstrate, through behavior, what a brand stands for."
Visuals are available upon request.
Jeffry Corbin's vision of a changing urban landscape led him to found Corbin Design, a signage/environmental graphics firm based in Traverse City, MI. Since 1976, the firm has completed hundreds of highly successful signage projects for various medical, educational, civic, governmental, banking and business clients around the country. Corbin Design's reputation, expertise and scope of projects continue to expand, and include wayfinding, interactive systems, websites, identity systems and print communications. A partial list of clients include: Penn State University, REI, Steelcase, Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Methodist Hospital in Indiana and Oakland University in Michigan. Corbin's civic wayfinding programs include: Downtown Indianapolis; Dayton/Montgomery County, Ohio; Madison, Wisconsin; and Columbus, Indiana. Additional information about the firm can be found at www.corbindesign.com.
The Leonhardt Group is recognized in creative and business circles for its design solutions in three brand development categories: strategy, naming and identity. TLG designs and delivers these categories through many channels, including corporate annual reports, packaging, marketing materials, on-line media and branded environments. Within the last five years, TLG has won more than 400 national and international awards. The firm employs 50 people and works for regional, national and international clients. Additional information and samples can be viewed at: www.tlg.com.