On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders
Abstract Background The salutary effect of window views on greenery for inpatients in hospitals on length of stay and recovery rate has been repeatedly shown, however, not for psychiatric inpatients. The study assessed the association between a window view on green trees or man-made objects and br...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2022-01-01
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| Series: | European Psychiatry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0924933822000098/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1811156327072792576 |
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| author | Anna Mascherek Sandra Weber Kevin Riebandt Carlos Cassanello Gregor Leicht Timothy Brick Jürgen Gallinat Simone Kühn |
| author_facet | Anna Mascherek Sandra Weber Kevin Riebandt Carlos Cassanello Gregor Leicht Timothy Brick Jürgen Gallinat Simone Kühn |
| author_sort | Anna Mascherek |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Abstract
Background
The salutary effect of window views on greenery for inpatients in hospitals on length of stay and recovery rate has been repeatedly shown, however, not for psychiatric inpatients. The study assessed the association between a window view on green trees or man-made objects and brightness of the room on length of stay in a sample of psychiatric inpatients from one clinic.
Methods
Data records of 244 psychiatric inpatients (mean age in years 41.8; SD = 11.8; 59.8% female, length of stay varying between 7 and 100 days) that were admitted between May 2013 and October 2018 with affective disorders were examined. Window view was assessed with images taken from each room and classified into showing man-made objects or green trees. The percentage of green within each image was also calculated as greenness of the view. Brightness was assessed with a luxmeter.
Results
Although no effect was found for the dichotomous measures (man-made objects vs. green trees), a suppression effect emerged for percentage of green and brightness. The results indicate that both greenness of the window view as well as brightness significantly reduce length of stay in psychiatric inpatients with affective disorders.
Conclusions
The suppression effect likely results from the characteristics of the windows; the greenest rooms also being the darkest. Due to the infrastructure of the ward, greenness and brightness came at the expense of each other. The results generally support the importance of a view into greenery and natural sunlight for recovery.
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:49:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b0f4bb4f2ebf4b7b9c96c84ac6c619c6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0924-9338 1778-3585 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:49:37Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj.art-b0f4bb4f2ebf4b7b9c96c84ac6c619c62023-03-09T12:33:56ZengCambridge University PressEuropean Psychiatry0924-93381778-35852022-01-016510.1192/j.eurpsy.2022.9On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disordersAnna Mascherek0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7923-080XSandra Weber1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8801-4065Kevin Riebandt2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2346-971XCarlos Cassanello3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1591-8802Gregor Leicht4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5104-9336Timothy Brick5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3339-9279Jürgen Gallinat6Simone Kühn7https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6823-7969Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany Lise Meitner Group for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, GermanyClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyHuman Development and Family Studies, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USAClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyClinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany Lise Meitner Group for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany Abstract Background The salutary effect of window views on greenery for inpatients in hospitals on length of stay and recovery rate has been repeatedly shown, however, not for psychiatric inpatients. The study assessed the association between a window view on green trees or man-made objects and brightness of the room on length of stay in a sample of psychiatric inpatients from one clinic. Methods Data records of 244 psychiatric inpatients (mean age in years 41.8; SD = 11.8; 59.8% female, length of stay varying between 7 and 100 days) that were admitted between May 2013 and October 2018 with affective disorders were examined. Window view was assessed with images taken from each room and classified into showing man-made objects or green trees. The percentage of green within each image was also calculated as greenness of the view. Brightness was assessed with a luxmeter. Results Although no effect was found for the dichotomous measures (man-made objects vs. green trees), a suppression effect emerged for percentage of green and brightness. The results indicate that both greenness of the window view as well as brightness significantly reduce length of stay in psychiatric inpatients with affective disorders. Conclusions The suppression effect likely results from the characteristics of the windows; the greenest rooms also being the darkest. Due to the infrastructure of the ward, greenness and brightness came at the expense of each other. The results generally support the importance of a view into greenery and natural sunlight for recovery. https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0924933822000098/type/journal_articleDepressiongreenness and brightnesslength of staysuppression effectwindow view |
| spellingShingle | Anna Mascherek Sandra Weber Kevin Riebandt Carlos Cassanello Gregor Leicht Timothy Brick Jürgen Gallinat Simone Kühn On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders European Psychiatry Depression greenness and brightness length of stay suppression effect window view |
| title | On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| title_full | On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| title_fullStr | On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| title_full_unstemmed | On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| title_short | On the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| title_sort | on the relation between a green and bright window view and length of hospital stay in affective disorders |
| topic | Depression greenness and brightness length of stay suppression effect window view |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0924933822000098/type/journal_article |
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