The New Year has begun bringing with it weight loss resolutions, promises to spend more time with family or a determination to be more organized, according to various surveys. As healthcare reform continues to develop, there is hope for a more positive year in the design industry. Whether that will be the reality remains to be seen.

But before we get that ball rolling let's take a look at some of the articles, blogs, topics that were of particular interest to our HEALTHCARE DESIGN audience.

Top 8 features from HEALTHCARE DESIGN in 2011.

by Karen Edmundson
Ideas to help healthcare facilities create more responsive and needs-specific environments.
 
by Jim Atkinson, AIA, EDAC, Jim Hohenstein, AIA, and Cyndi McCullough, MSN, EDAC
The patient room is where patients spend the majority of their hospital stay and where they have the opportunity to interact with multiple caregivers.
 
by Kathy Harper, RN, MBA, EDAC; Hank Adams; and Dan Thomas, AIA, EDAC
With its guiding principle top-of-mind at all times, the design team for the new Parkland Hospital in Dallas set to work to design a hospital for the future.
 
by Richard L. Peck, Contributing Editor
The architecture/engineering/construction industry is undergoing a paradigm shift thanks to the advent of computerized 3-D design.
 
by Debbie Gregory, RN, BSN, Assoc. IIDA
Key considerations for optimal planning and coordination of architecture, design, and technology. 
 
by By Eileen B. Malone, RN, MSN, MS, EDAC, and Barbara A. Dellinger, MA, AAHID, IIDA, CID, EDAC
An evidence-based design furniture checklist to assist in the process of specifying furniture for healthcare facilities.
 
by Scott Lindvall
Integrating Lean principles, evidence-based design, and sustainability in hospital space.
 
by Janet Brown, Contributing Editor
A case study at Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
 
Do you have some articles that caught your eye? Moving on to the Top 6 blogs of 2011:
 
A look at the suggested workflow practices and design concepts for contemporary invasive environments for patient care.
 
by Todd Hutlock
The mutlimedia queen promotes evidence-based design in an issue of her magazine.
 
by Chris Vickery
Pediatric patient rooms and units likewise warrant unique design direction to accommodate children’s medical and emotional needs.
 
by Jennifer Kovacs Silvis
Infection control never ceases to be a hot topic in the healthcare design industry.
 
by Chris Vickery
More than just add-ons, artwork is integral to the overall plan of a hospital.
 
by Bernita Beikmann
The pure intention of a lean approach to anything is to improve processes by eliminating waste; expending resources for any goal that does not add value to the end customer is waste.
 
Which blogs were of note to you?
 
HEALTHCARE DESIGN’s Architectural Showcase featured in September each year is also always a rather popular area of interest. It features firms from across North America with submitted projects that are reviewed by a jury of architects, designers, researchers, and facility-based experts. Both the print and digital versions of this issue bring a wealth of design ideas and construction trends that readers may find relevant.   
 
Our HEALTHCARE DESIGN Conference was a great success, bringing people from across the nation and from other countries to share their knowledge and learn. Through various media avenues such as blogs, articles, virtual events, readers, and professionals who could not participate in this event were able to be a part of the conference. If you didn't already, check out the photo gallery too. The next conference will be held in Phoenix, AZ, November 3-6, 2012.  
 
Let us know what caught your eye in HEALTHCARE DESIGN in 2011, or what you would like to see in 2012!