Analysis of the wayfinding system in a university based tertiary care hospital

The ease of wayfinding in a complex environment can be understood by the users of the environment. Wayfinding, as a spatial problem solving activity, in a hospital can become a problem for the first time users. The aim of this study is to analyze the existing wayfinding system of a university based tertiary care hospital from the users' point of views; in other words, to understand the usability of the wayfinding system within the hospital. A questionnaire was administered to the users of the hospital. The results of the study indicated that the majority of the users were familiar with the hospital and spatial familiarity decreased the possibility of getting lost. The users found the number of signs sufficient and they had no difficulty in finding the elevators, staircases, main entrance, departments, information desks, and doctors' rooms since they were legible and visible from the circulation system, except for the academic campus. This study suggests that additional signage and you-are-here maps should be integrated into the wayfinding system of the hospital when an expansion has been done to the hospital layout.