Dr. Julie ZookTURKI MOHAMMED RASHED ALTHAQIB2022-06-012022-06-01https://drepo.sdl.edu.sa/handle/20.500.14154/59446ABSTRACT Background and purpose: Diabetes Mellitus is a significant public health issue, affecting more than 347 million adults worldwide. In the United States, in parallel with other parts of the world, diabetes mellitus is a significant public health problem recognized as a pandemic, or disease of high global prevalence. There is increasing recognition of the importance of addressing the non-biomedical facets of the disease to improve individual and population health. For specific diseases such as diabetes, formal and informal learning are central to disease management. However, there is currently no systematic research examining the provision and quality of spaces that accommodate such activities in health care facilities. The purpose of this thesis is to provide an initial baseline description of the quantity and quality of spaces for education in diabetes care centers. Research Question: This study describes the quantity and quality of learning spaces by looking at the programming and layout attributes of four diabetes care centers in the United States, built between 1978 and 2017. Particular attention is paid to the following question: What are the characteristics of diabetes care center layout that might contribute to patient-centered education spaces in the United States? Methods: Comparative case studies of diabetes care centers in the United States were conducted in this study. Four setting diabetes care centers were analyzed, Strelitz Diabetes Center, Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, Joslin Diabetes Center, and Fort Yuma Diabetes Care Center. A multi-method approach was used in this study that includes floorplan analysis and tracking of the literature about techniques in diabetes care. Results: This study is anticipated to result in an increased understanding of how learning spaces have been and continue to be embedded in the layout of outpatient diabetes care centers. Secondarily, the study aims to shed light on the correspondence between prevailing ideas about the management of diabetes and the layout of diabetes care centers over the last 60 years. The findings may be of practical relevance to architects and clients who are contemplating programming and design strategies that include patient education as part of outpatient diabetes care centers. The study found that outpatient group education spaces for diabetes care varied in size, distance from key functions, visibility, and integration, and they were embedded in floorplans of varying complexity, indicating a lack of norms or standards of practice related to diabetes care education space. Conclusion: Based on my review of outpatient diabetes care, education, and design, this thesis advocates planning group education spaces to be proximate, visible, and well-integrated, and embedding these spaces in floorplans with simple layouts. These attributes correspond to the desired conditions for diabetes self-management education, which should support learning that is convenient, social, and active. Future research will give more consideration to the classroom environment's role in improving patients' overall comfort and will place a greater emphasis on diabetes centers as integrated systems that include classrooms and all other components associated with diabetes education and treatment.en