The visual humanisation of ward walls and hospital environments prompts children to use their imagination to “escape”. At the very least it offers soothing distractions, particularly if it is interactive and makes use of effective lighting. Moreover, special settings created by means of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies could offer children in hospital or awaiting treatment the opportunity to experience, in a psychologically and emotionally “safe” way, healthcare procedures that may be emotionally and psychologically stressful or traumatic for them and their families.

Z + Health has taken over the mandate from Antonio Zamperla SpA to implement the agreement for the humanisation of paediatric hospital environments signed in 2019 with: (i) the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health of the University Hospital of Padua; (ii) the Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialisation and the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health of the University of Padua; and (iii) the Foundation Salus Pueri of Padua.

The scope of the agreement is “… to develop and test a product for the humanisation of the environment which, in case it turns out to be effective and it is scientifically validated on the field, can be further refined and hence brought into production ……. to “decorate” some environments ….”. The agreement further reads,” …. Hospitalisation or medical examinations can be very stressful for many children and their families. … By means of the technology that underlies the interactive painting walls, i.e. sort of windows on a three-dimensional world the user can interact with, it will be possible to create a welcoming and stimulating environment. A setting that reproduces the characteristics of well-known and relaxing living environments favour the welcoming of children by stimulating their imagination and sensoriality in a playful environment, within a healthcare context. The use of these technologies also seems to improve the level of parental satisfaction (Biddiss et al., 2018)…”.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the project has been temporarily suspended. However, since January 2020 a waiting room in the paediatric hospital in Padua features four large interactive painting walls which have since been in operation and widely used by patients, offering them an important emotional, psychological and playful break. The impact of these technologies on children’s behaviour will be investigated and evaluated.