Episode 73, Ghina Itani, MBA, CHID, NCIDQ, EDAC, ASID, Owner/Principal Interior Designer of Itani Design Concepts (IDC)

"Art is underutilized as a tool. We should ask: what's the intent behind this piece? Why this piece… and what is this going to do for patients?" —Ghina Itani on HID2.0

What if "beautiful" isn't just a nice-to-have — but a clinical tool?

In this episode, Cheryl sits down with Ghina Itani, MBA, CHID, NCIDQ, ASID, EDAC — founder and principal designer of Itani Design Concepts (woman-owned, founded in 2007). Together they unpack how healthcare design decisions ripple outward: influencing everything from patient stress to staff retention, wayfinding, and even workplace culture.

You'll hear Ghina's origin story — including the moment she rediscovered her portfolio in a box during her "little ones" season and realized her career was still waiting — and how one early hospital project helped raise expectations for what healthcare spaces could feel like.

Then we will dive deep into neuroaesthetics (the brain's response to beauty and environment), why designers must avoid "paint-by-numbers" claims, and how color research can be shared without overpromising. Along the way, Ghina breaks down the famous Baker–Miller Pink story and what it teaches us about context, demographics, and why no single color is a universal prescription.

Finally, you'll explore art as care — including the idea of museum prescriptions — and why art is often underutilized as a real tool for healing and connection (not just decoration.)

What you'll hear in this episode

• A powerful origin story about timing, identity, and returning to ambition

• Why healthcare design is never just aesthetic — it's operational

• Neuroaesthetics: what it is, why it matters, and what it isn't

• Color guidelines: where they help… and where they fall apart

• The "pink prison" story — and what it teaches about context over clichés

• How designers can present research logically (especially with clinical leaders)

• Art as a care intervention, not an accessory — including museum prescription programs

• Why instinct still belongs in evidence-based work

Key Takeaways

• Design has reach. A chair choice can affect not just comfort — but operations, loyalty, and even patient flow.

• Color isn't a magic button. It's about dose, placement, scale, lighting, and culture — not "blue = calm."

• Neuroaesthetics is a lens, not a guarantee. Designers can use research to guide decisions without promising outcomes.

• Inclusion builds trust. Bringing staff and stakeholders into the design process reduces resistance and improves buy-in.

• Art can be therapeutic. When chosen with intent, it can open conversation, reduce stress, and support care experiences.

Memorable Quotes from Ghina Itani

• "I kind of realized that… my career is waiting. It's right here."

• "I took chances and I was gutsy."

• "Even if I didn't have an idea what I'm doing at the time, I always think: I'm going to figure it out."

• "When an opportunity comes, you have to seize it."

• "If I think too much about something, I probably won't do it."

• "Owning a business and being a designer are two different things."

• "Now we're affecting operation."

• "We cannot just say, this color gives you this outcome."

• "Neuroaesthetics is misunderstood… it's not a prescription that you put it and solve the problem."

• "Art is underutilized as a tool."

• "We still think of it as pretty and not pretty… but we shouldn't think that way."

• "We should think: what's the intent behind this piece? Why this piece… and what is this going to do for patients?"

• "We are the product of our environment."

• "We cannot make it ever robotic… it will always need the human."

• "At the end of the day… I would trust what I think of it and what my instincts tell me as well."

Resources & Links

ITANIA DESIGN CONCEPTS

- Itani Design Concepts (website): https://itanidc.com/

- About Ghina Itani: https://itanidc.com/index.php/about/

- Contact page: https://itanidc.com/index.php/contact/

- Portfolio: https://itanidc.com/index.php/portfolio/

- ASID Design Finder listing (Ghina Itani): https://designfinder.asid.org/listing/ghina-itani

CREDENTIALS & ORGANIZATIONS MENTIONED

- AAHID (American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers): https://aahid.org/

- CHID credential info (AAHID): https://aahid.org/certification/

- EDAC (The Center for Health Design): https://www.healthdesign.org/certification-outreach/edac/

- The Center for Health Design (home): https://www.healthdesign.org/

- CIDQ / NCIDQ Certification: https://www.cidq.org/

 

TOPICS FROM THE EPISODE

- Neuroesthetics (overview): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroesthetics

- Baker–Miller pink (overview): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker%E2%80%93Miller_pink

- Museum prescriptions (Montreal Museum of Fine Arts): https://www.mbam.qc.ca/en/news/museum-prescriptions/

- Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics: https://neuroaesthetics.med.upenn.edu/

Connect with Ghina Itani

• Email: gina@itanidc.com

• Phone: 661-549-5886

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ghina-itani/

Our Industry Partners

The world is changing quickly. The Center for Health Design is committed to providing the healthcare design and senior living design industries with the latest research, best practices and innovations. The Center can help you solve today's biggest healthcare challenges and make a difference in care, safety, medical outcomes, and the bottom line.  Find out more at healthdesign.org.

Additional support for this podcast comes from our industry partners:

• The American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers

• The Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design

Learn more about how to become a Certified Healthcare Interior Designer®  by visiting the American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers at: https://aahid.org/.

Connect to a community interested in supporting clinician involvement in design and construction of the built environment by visiting The Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design at https://www.nursingihd.com/

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The world is changing quickly. The Center for Health Design is committed to providing the healthcare design and senior living design industries with the latest research, best practices and innovations. The Center can help you solve today's biggest healthcare challenges and make a difference in care, safety, medical outcomes, and the bottom line.  Find out more at healthdesign.org.

Additional support for this podcast comes from our industry partners:

• The American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers

• The Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design

Learn more about how to become a Certified Healthcare Interior Designer®  by visiting the American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers at: https://aahid.org/.

Connect to a community interested in supporting clinician involvement in design and construction of the built environment by visiting The Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design at https://www.nursingihd.com/

FEATURED PRODUCT

Porcelanosa are at the forefront of sustainable manufacturing – clients not only expect this of their suppliers but are increasingly asking to see the receipts.

Let's unpack this, did you know that hundreds of preeminent members of The American Institute of Architects –  The AIA – have signed the AIA Materials Pledge? The Pledge is aligned with the Mindful Materials Common Materials Framework – the CMF. This is just one, very impressive example of how the movement to support decision making for building product selection has reached new highs. We can see these explained as 5 pillars of sustainability:

• (The first) - Human Health: Focusing on avoiding hazardous substances and promoting well-being.

• (Then) - Social Health & Equity: Addressing human rights and fair labor practices throughout the supply chain.

• (The third) is Ecosystem Health: Supporting the regeneration of natural resources and habitats.

• (This is followed by) Climate Health: Reducing and sequestering carbon emissions.

• (And the fifth pillar) is The Circular Economy: Promoting a zero-waste future through design for resilience, adaptability, and reuse.

I mentioned the receipts -How do we track the progress of these principles and values? Without measurement, there's no clear path to improvement or accountability.

The Mindful Materials CMF maps a framework of over 650 sustainability factors across those five key areas.

 

A cornerstone of material health transparency is an Environmental Product Declaration EPD report. The best are independently verified for accuracy by third party certification bodies – a company cannot mark their own report cards. EPDs are highly technical documents containing scientific information on the embodied carbon used to manufacture products. I have just read and included here an EPD for a Porcelanosa Tile – there are upwards of 1000 data inputs to quantify its climate impact.

Porcelanosa offer the confidence and certainty of knowing that every tile, every slab of XTONE porcelain or KRION solid surface  has a Product Specific EPD – when architects and designers work with these materials they are making a robust decision to meet their sustainable design goals.

To learn more about how Porcelanosa help their customers design for resiliency, here is a link to their comprehensive Corporate Social Responsibility Report: https://www.porcelanosa.com/en/corporate-social-responsibility/