Impact of Physical Environmental Factors on Mental Health in the Hospital: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

Physical environments can negatively influence occupants' mental health or positively contribute to occupants' mental health. In hospitals, research on the relationship between mental health and the physical environment is crucial. However, many review papers have focused on the impact of the physical environment on patients. Despite the significant influence of the medical staff's mental health on overall healthcare service quality, there is a lack of reviews concentrating on the relationship between the medical staff and the physical environment. Therefore, this review aims to address this gap by providing a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between the physical environment and the mental health of medical staff, encompassing both negative and positive aspects. This review introduces six indicators of medical staff mental health, categorizing stress, fatigue and burnout as negative aspects and well-being, satisfaction and productivity as positive aspects. Productivity has been newly added to emphasize the importance of safe patient care and a healthy workplace. The results demonstrate that certain physical environments (e.g. layout, furniture and staff space) could affect patients and medical staff differently and that the effects on medical staff could also vary depending on their roles and the specific situations they face.