Designing Paediatric Hospital Navigation: A Human-Centred Mobile App Solution

Hospital communication and wayfinding are crucial challenges, especially in paediatric contexts where orienting oneself in space and managing emotions is particularly difficult. The complexity of hospital environments and the ineffectiveness of orientation systems can cause cognitive stress and difficulties understanding, negatively influencing healthcare quality and operational efficiency. An effective wayfinding system must communicate clear messages, making the hospital space interpretable and familiar, using scientific approaches integrated into the architecture. Technologies such as mobile apps can improve orientation and personalize assistance, but a thorough evaluation of the usability and effectiveness of these systems is necessary. This article addresses the challenges of hospital-paediatric wayfinding by presenting a new mobile app that combines navigation, booking and entertainment. The study, conducted at the Meyer Children’s Hospital in Florence, made it possible to define the requirements of a new orientation system for the medical day hospital, improving autonomous orientation and optimizing the user experience. The proposed solution developed thanks to the application of the Human-Centred Design and User Experience approach, aims to reduce stress and improve hospital efficiency, transforming the wayfinding experience into an interactive and engaging process for paediatric patients and their parents.