The waiting room is no one’s favourite place to be. It can often be the venue for seemingly endless clock-watching, while appointments before yours appear to extend well beyond the bounds of reason. However, whether you’re responsible for a hospital waiting room or a sitting room outside a legal office, you can make the space more comfortable.
*Collaborative post
This article will offer simple, actionable suggestions for enhancing the comfort in waiting rooms of all kinds, touching on a range of different sensory elements that will make a difference to your clientele, guests or patients.
Enhancing physical comfort with waiting room furniture
It probably comes as no shock that the best way to facilitate physical comfort is to offer a range of different seating options. Think about the worst waiting room in a hospital you’ve ever been in. It probably looked like a collection of identical, stiff-backed chairs all lined up in rows. Incorporating a range of different seating options is a surefire way to ensure comfort among the range of people who will have to wait there:
- Contract sofas for longer waits and families
- Armchairs for elderly and less mobile guests
- Armless chairs for larger guests
Improving accessibility and other comfort physical factors
Along with offering plenty of seats, you should also ensure the room is maintained at a comfortable, consistent temperature, perhaps tailored to the primary clientele. For example, older guests might need a warmer space. Good circulation balances out temperature to prevent stuffiness. Similarly, you should establish wide pathways and easy movement through the space to ensure accessibility for those with limited mobility.
It’s also important to facilitate a sufficient beverage station, with cold water and maybe even some alternatives, to make sure no one goes thirsty.
Sensory enhancement in a waiting room
It’s not all about seating. Comfort can be improved by approaching the body’s other senses in a range of ways, ensuring a more comprehensive approach to ambience. A doctor’s waiting room can feel extremely clinical and even off-putting, so approaching the senses more holistically can have great benefits.
- Lighting considerations. Harsh overhead lighting can increase stress, so consider enhancing natural lighting with windows and sheet curtains. Similarly, lamps can offer a warmer glow.
- Calming sounds. Some smooth, instrumental ambient music at a low volume can help to distract from treatment sounds or more anxiety-driving sounds like television news shows. Things like water features can also offer calming tones.
- Neutral pleasant scents. Subtle, natural scents, or even light essential oils, can help to create a more relaxed atmosphere in a waiting room. Make sure not to overdo it on the smells!
Additional mental comfort features
You can do all you can to engage the senses in a waiting room, but in reality, the mind is still going to be one of the most important factors in how guests feel. Including features that benefit the mental state and general accommodation of waiting parties can be the difference that makes your rooms feel special.
- Leave both relevant and alternative reading materials for information and distraction on your coffee tables
- Ensure there are plenty of charging ports to relieve guest anxiety and stress for longer waits
- Provide easy-to-access complimentary Wi-Fi with passwords clearly posted and communicated
- Offer a children’s corner with some basic toys or kids’ reading material in case of family visits or if your clientele is child-focused
- Make sure your staff clearly communicates wait time, so guests don’t feel forgotten or brushed aside
It doesn’t matter if you work in the medical field, legal profession or some sort of professional consultancy. Your guests should feel comfortable while they wait. Follow these guidelines to make sure they feel as happy as possible before they’re seen.