In partnership with Capita, a think tank for young children and their families, Cognitive Design explores the topic of designing pediatric clinics to promote Early Relational Health.

The importance of early relational health (ERH) is increasingly recognized. ERH is the concept that well-formed social relationships are essential to holistic health and children’s early development. The focus has largely been on the relationship between children and their parents or other primary caregivers. But medical providers also have an important role.

Primary care providers are well-positioned to promote EHR because they have frequent, regular visits with families throughout early childhood. They can provide the basis for efforts that address equity, resilience, and growth. As a result, the environment in which the provider-caregiver-child relationship develops is critically important to the health and development of the child.

Well checks are precious opportunities to promote whole health and design can help facilitate good communication, establishing trust, and developing rapport - the building blocks of ERH. By balancing these elements, the design of the pediatric clinic can have a lasting, positive, impact on child development.

To learn more about this research, Join our Network and download a copy of Meaningful Relationships: Designing Pediatric Clinical Environments to Promote Early Relational Health.