What I Brought Home from HDC: A Nurse Leader's Perspective

Blog contribution by HCD Scholarship Recipient Heidi Shedenhelm, DNP, RN, NE-BC, FAONL

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I was not sure what to expect walking into my first Healthcare Design Conference + Expo. What I found was a community I did not know I had been missing.

HDC is where architects, designers, engineers, nurses, and industry innovators come together around a shared purpose: creating spaces where patients heal and care teams thrive. I currently work alongside colleagues at my institution to help shape new clinical spaces, and this conference came at exactly the right moment. I left with a deeper understanding of design, fresh ideas I could act on immediately, and a renewed sense of the importance of this work.

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Learning inside and outside the room. 

The sessions were excellent, connecting design decisions to patient outcomes, safety, and the everyday realities of clinical work. What surprised me was how much I also took away from conversations in the hallways and over meals. Architects eager to understand how nurses move through a unit. Designers looking for the clinical perspective that would make their next project stronger. As a member of the Nursing Institute of Healthcare Design, I had the added joy of connecting with NIHD colleagues who share this same passion. Those exchanges were energizing. I was reminded how important the clinical voice is in healthcare design, and I came home with new relationships I fully intend to keep.

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The exhibit hall was worth the trip on its own. 

The showroom floor was impressive. Furnishings thoughtfully designed around patient safety, patient experience, and how caregivers actually work. Materials where infection prevention was built in from the very first decision. Thoughtful modular designs that expedite construction while keeping responsible stewardship of resources in mind. What stood out most was the quality of the conversations with the people behind these products. They were genuinely curious about clinical realities, and that curiosity showed in everything they were building. I brought home a long list of ideas from that floor alone.

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If you are a nurse leader, HDC is a conference worth your time. I cannot recommend it enough. 

The nursing voice belongs here. I will be back.