OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Nearly 40 high school students helped design Children’s Nebraska’s new Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, giving them real-world experience while creating a space tailored for young patients.
Bryan High School senior Cristian Carrillo was among the students who participated in the project as he prepares for his future career goals.
“I do like interior design. I do like design. I’m actually trying to study civil engineering at UNO,” Carrillo said.
Students selected furniture and design elements
Children’s Nebraska gave Carrillo and his classmates the opportunity to help design the interior of the new facility before construction was complete.
“We went to the Children’s Hospital – it was not yet built. We went to go select the, sort of the interior design of the building,” Carrillo said.
The students chose furniture, colors, art and lighting — all important sensory details intended to bring comfort to patients in vulnerable situations.
“There was one chair in particular that the youth liked quite a bit more than the other options, and the kids all said, ‘When I sit in it, I feel like I got a hug,’” said Jeanee Weiss, Children’s Nebraska Behavioral Health and Wellness Center community health and strategy leader.
Design choices reflected student understanding
Senior Jacqueline Cipriano said their choices came from understanding what young patients might need.
“You’re already entering and you’re in a very vulnerable matter. You feel really tense. So, it’s just to calm people down and make them feel safer,” Cipriano said.
Carrillo said he considered his own comfort when making design decisions.
“When I was choosing the designs I was thinking of what I would feel comfortable in – a place or an area where I would, like if I were ever having some sort of mental crisis, what I would feel comfortable in,” he said.
The Behavioral Health and Wellness Center opened nearly a month ago. According to the CEO, one in five kids struggle with anxiety or depression, and those numbers aren’t going down.
Weiss sees the student involvement as a step in the right direction.
“All of them understood that their choices were going to help make another child feel better, another child feel calm, and another child feel comfortable,” Weiss said.
The project provided patients with a personalized treatment environment while giving young adults hands-on experience.
Principal CK at Bryan High School says they’re looking to have as many partnerships like this one as possible.
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