Ryan Awdry

Over the years the importance of recognising mental wellbeing has become greater, however, there are still challenges which need to be faced in order to enhance the quality of life within Dundee’s cognitive safety. I began by looking at facilities within Dundee which are designed to provide psychiatric care. My findings revealed that Dundee’s ability to care for those with depression, anxiety or isolation can be characterised as exhausted; with staff under enormous pressure and patients in need of urgent care accompanied with insufficient resources. 

First stage aims to raise awareness of our cognitive wellbeing by pre-emptively reaching out for help to tackle depression, anxiety or isolation in the hopes of reducing the chances of being sectioned into facilities which may be unable to provide the appropriate care and as a result may only add to the problem. Rather than redesigning an entire rehabilitation establishment, it seems beneficial to design a smaller scale structure with the ability to be transported easily from one location to another - spreading the awareness of getting help which is often the first stage of the healing process. 

While this project does not aim to redesign an entire facility, it can act as a stepping stone to encourage thoughtful design not only in the existing psychiatric ward of Dundee’s Ninewells hospital, but it can also act as a first step to implementing other potential structures to promote safe, positive mental wellbeing.