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Jonathan West

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  • Jonathan West

  • Area

    The Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design

    Role

    Research Fellow, The Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design

  • Jonathan has spent 13 years working in design in healthcare, and leads the Healthcare Research Space at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design at the Royal College of Art. Jonathan's research interests include design for patient safety and inclusive design. His work on a new resuscitation trolley for the National Patient Safety Agency won two Medical Futures Innovation Awards and completed successful clinical trials prior to manufacture. He has shaped high profile projects such as Design Bugs Out and Design for Patient Dignity with the Department of Health and Design Council, as well as supervising projects with partners ranging from ArjoHuntleigh to the Medical Defence Union. He was Design Lead on the EPSRC-funded project, ‘Designing Out Medical Error’. This three-year multidisciplinary project in collaboration with Imperial College, London, looked at the role design can play in reducing medical error on hospital wards. This award-winning project pioneered methods of collaboration and has resulted in a suite of designs for the hospital ward, and paved the way for the HELIX Centre, where Jonathan was seconded.  His work has been published internationally in journals, books and as papers.

  • Biography

  • Jonathan has a background in design and engineering, with a first class degree in Mechanical Engineering at Birmingham University and a Masters in Industrial Design Engineering at the Royal College of Art in 2003. He designed a powered paediatric wheelchair for Sunrise Medical, meeting user needs and designing a working prototype before joining the centre in 2004.

    As a design researcher in the centre, Jonathan provided GlaxoSmithKline with design guidance on its pharmaceutical packs – directly influencing the company's European pack style. His work on a new resuscitation trolley for the National Patient Safety Agency won two Medical Futures Innovation Awards and completed successful clinical trials prior to manufacture. It was part of the four-month Ergonomics: Real Design exhibition at London's Design Museum. His subsequent work has grown in scope; he has worked on the influential 'Design Bugs Out' programme, completed projects for clients such as the Medical Defence Union and ArjoHuntleigh, and was the Senior Associate on the award-winning EPSRC-funded Designing Out Medical Error (DOME) project.

    Jonathan's research interests include design for patient safety and inclusive design. He has helped the Centre's Health & Patient Safety research lab to grow by shaping high profile projects such as Design Bugs Out and Design for Patient Dignity with the Department of Health and Design Council, as well as a project to redesign the Cervical Collar with Bath Institute of Medical Engineering. He was Senior Associate on the EPSRC-funded project Designing Out Medical Error. This three-year multidisciplinary project in collaboration with Imperial College, London, looks at the role design can play in reducing medical error on hospital wards. This award-winning project pioneered methods of collaboration and has resulted in a suite of designs for the hospital ward. These have been exhibited at the RCA, the Royal College of Surgeons and the Pontio Centre in 2012. Clinical trials of the designs have been successfully completed and one design, the CareCentre, is manufactured and on sale.

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  • External collaborations

  • Reviewer:

    • Design Journal
    • Design for Health Journal
    • British Medical Journal
    • Papers for Include 2013, Royal College of Art, Hong Kong Design Centre and the School of Design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University
    • Papers for Include 2011, Royal College of Art
    • The 'Young and Old' session of the Shanghai Cumulus Conference held in Tongji University College of Design and Innovation Shanghai 7-10 September 2010
    • Papers for Include 2009, Royal College of Art
    • Papers for Include 2007, Royal College of Art
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  • Publications, exhibitions and other outcomes

  • Selected Publications

    Meldaikyte, G., Fusari, G., Matthews, E., West, J. (2017) ICU Journey: Humanising the pati­­­­ent experience of Intensive Care. Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    West, J., Meldaikyte, G., Wojdecka, A., Hardy, A., Garety, P. (2017) SlowMo / Mo - digital technology to provide support in coping with daily life. Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    West, J., Meldaikyte, G. Raby, E., Alwani, R., Wojdecka, A., Fusari, G., Matthews, E. (2017) Developing the Double Diamond Process for Implementation– insights from a decade of Inclusive Design projects. Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    Alwani, R., Raby, E., West, J. (2017) Foyle Reeds: How can design reduce suicide attempts at a specific place whilst at the same time improving the experience for all? Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    Raby, E., Alwani, R., West, J. (2017) How can design reduce suicide attempts through everyday social and civic spaces? Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    Matthews, E., Fusari, G., West, J. (2017) Patient Flow: When a system grinds to a halt, how can design fix it, when nothing else has? Design 4 Health Conference, Melbourne 

    West, J., Wojdecka, A., Matthews, E., Gheerawo, R., Hardy, A., Garety, P. (2016) SlowMo: Inclusive design to improve therapy for paranoid and suspicious thoughts. International Conference on Universal Design, Nagoya

    West, J., Wojdecka, A., Matthews, E., Gheerawo, R., Hardy, A., Garety, P. (2016) SlowMo: Inclusive design to improve therapy for paranoid and suspicious thoughts. International Conference on Universal Design, Nagoya 2016 (pending)

    Myerson, J., West, J. (2015). Make It Better: how universal design principles can have an impact on healthcare services to improve the patient experience. Universal Design in Education, Dublin, Ireland, 12-13 November 2015

    West, J., Tomos, H. & Matthews, E. (2014) `The Creative Step in Patient Safety', workshop at ISQUA (The International Society for Quality in Health Care), Rio de Janeiro, 7 October 2014

    West, J., Davey, G., Anderson, A., Brodie, A., Norris, B. and Myerson, J. (2014)  Designing out medical error - an interdisciplinary approach to the design of healthcare equipment The Design Journal 17 (3) 

    Norris B, West J, Anderson A, Davey G, Brodie A (2013), Taking ergonomics to the bedside – A multi-disciplinary approach to designing safer healthcare Applied Ergonomics Vol 45/3, 629-639

    West, J. (2013) 'Designing Out Medical Error', poster presentation at Design of Medical Devices Conference, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

    West, J., Davey, G., Anderson, A., Matthews, E. and Myerson, J. (2012) 'Designing out Medical Error (DOME): Establishing an evidence base to design products and equipment that better support surgical wards' World Health Design 5(4), pp. 48-55

    West, J. (2011) ‘Designing Out Medical Error' oral presentation at the 7th World Congress for Design & Health in Boston, July

    West, J. (2010) Contribution to 'Design for Patient Safety' chapter, Vincent, C. (2010) 'Patient Safety (second edition)' BMJ Books/Wiley-Blackwell, UK

    West, J. (2010) 'Designing Out Medical Engineering project and resus:station' (2010) presented at the International Society for Quality in Health Care conference, Paris October

    West, J. & Coleman, R. (2008) Protection in medication: embedding safer pack design in pharmaceutical supply chain priorities Improving Patient Safety Conference proceedings July 2008, Ergonomics Society, ISBN 978-0-9554225-2-2

    Matthews, E., West, J. Halls, S. & Coleman, R. (2008) Closing the loop: taking evidence-based designs into manufacture Improving Patient Safety Conference proceedings July 2008, Ergonomics Society, ISBN 978-0-9554225-2-2

    West, J., Halls, S., Coleman, R. & Lowe, C. (2008) Resus:station: breathing life back into resuscitation Improving Patient Safety Conference proceedings July 2008, Ergonomics Society, ISBN 978-0-9554225-2-2

    Matthews, E., Gheerawo, R. & West, J. (2008) Academia and industry: managing knowledge transfer to improve patient safety International Design Management Institute Education Conference proceedings April 2008

    West, J. (2007) Resus:station; a redesign of the resuscitation trolley Bulletin of The Royal College of Anaesthetists, Issue 45 September 2007, 2301-2304

    West, J. (2007) Resus:station; a redesign of the resuscitation trolley in Include 2007, Royal College of Art, London

    West, J., Halls, S., Coleman, R. (2006) 'Resuscitation Events: the design perspective' in Resuscitation 69 (1) 56

    Keynote Presentations

    West, J. (2017) Design thinking: creative approaches to tackling today’s health challenges Lunchtime workshop at European Healthcare Design, London, June 2017

    West, J., Gheerawo, R. (2016) A Storm is Coming Keynote at GIANT conference, London, November 2016

    Hardy, A., Garety, P., Freeman, D., Kuipers, E., West J., Matthews, E., Jacob, K. and Wojdecka A. (2016) Designing the Future of Talking Therapy: Using digital health to improve outcomes in psychosis. Conference Abstract: 2nd Behaviour Change Conference: Digital Health and Wellbeing. London, United Kingdom, 24-25 February 2016

    West, J. (2016) Why Design Matters: A People-Centred Approach to Healthcare (Breakfast Workshop, European Healthcare Design, Royal College of Physicians, London 28 June 2016

    Buckle, P., Barlow J., West. J. & Fusari, G. (2015) `Using the Design Process to Improve Healthcare Products: What are the major challenges?' Panel discussion at NIHR Diagnostic Evidence Cooperative Summer Open Day, London, 1 July 2015

    Matthews, E., West J. & Fusari, G. (2015) `Research and Design: How do we combine them to bring better solutions to the market?' at BioTrinity 2015 Conference, London, 12 May 2015

    West.J. (2013) 'Design for Patient Safety' (2013) WUD Silesia, Poland, November 2013  

    West, J., Anderson, O., Briggs, M., Walker, S. 'Design Is Everything' (2013) keynote at the ISQua Conference, Edinburgh, October 2013

    West, J. (2013) 'Designing Out Medical Error', Design of Medical Devices Conference, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

    West, J. (2011) 'Design to Improve the Safety and Quality of Care' poster presentation at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement National Forum on Quality Improvement in Healthcare in Orlando, December

    'Design Is Everything' (2011) keynote at the Swiss Patient Safety Foundation International Congress in Basel, November 2011

    Resuscitation trolley project (2010) presented at Centre for Patient Safety and Service Quality Summer Symposium (Imperial College, London) July 2010

    Inspired by Design (2009) Lecture to A-level Product Design students, Institute of Education November/December 2009
    Posters

    Almeida, L., Fusari, G., West, J., Matthews, E. (2016) Patient Flow in Acute Medical Units. At European Healthcare Design, London. 28- 29 June 2016

    Meldaikyte, G., Fusari, G., West, J., Matthews, E. (2016) Future ICU: Improving the patient experience of critical care. At  European Healthcare Design, London. 28-29 June 2016  

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