Dave Mattis, the Nurture AHM serving the Carolinas and Virginia, proves that patience and persistence truly pays off with a recent Sonata win at Cone Regional Cancer Center in Greensboro, NC. The project of 28 infusion bays came about chiefly because of a CEU presentation he gave to the A&D firm in May 2008. They were working on the Cone Regional Cancer Center when the economy fell apart and the project was shoved to the back burner. For nearly 18 months Dave heard nothing, but when he finally did get an

answer, it was the wrong one: the project had been resurrected but the director had selected DIRTT. He followed up with the architect to confirm the bad news, and found that while the director had selected DIRTT, a new director had been named to the project who was not quite happy with the DIRTT solution. A glimmer of hope still remained for Sonata.

Sure enough, about 30 days later Dave received a call from the architect asking if he could meet with both him and the new cancer center director. After his presentation, he was able to take the architect, director, and two nurse managers to visit a Sonata installation underway nearby, at the VA in Salisbury, NC.

The drama didn't end there: the contractor became a competitor when the director of the cancer center allowed them to offer a Millwork solution. It ended well however, as they chose Sonata to install.
 
So what set Nurture apart in the face of this tough competition? Dave credits the insights he presented to the client. They were impressed that Nurture took the time to do the research and develop the insights and then really understand what actually happens in an Oncology unit. Seeing it installed at the VA reinforced that inclination. Also crucial to this project win was the Nurture dealer Storr Greensboro, and their designer Genia Brown. Storr and Genia were extremely helpful in preparing multiple solutions requiring layouts, specials around customer needs and requotes as required for a successful customer experience.

The world of healthcare is constantly changing - it evolves at such a high rate of speed, it's a persistent challenge to keep up with the latest trends. Even with all the advantages of new media tools, it can sometimes be most inspirational to have a focused conversation with someone. We at Nurture find that the TEDMED conference is one of the best places every year to get inspired about the potential for innovation in healthcare. 

As interesting and important as its video and social media coverage is, the most compelling part of the TEDMED experience is still the real-time, in-person gathering. For the past three years, Nurture by Steelcase has been a primary sponsor of TEDMED -- not just because of the message around innovation and systemic design -- but because of this very physical and real experience of exchanging ideas with some of the biggest thinkers in health and wellness today. Speakers this year include the Director of the National Institutes of Health, the CEO of the American Red Cross, and the Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

We approach TEDMED as a healthcare space itself -- a living, breathing, thought-provoking healthcare experience.  It's an environment designed to force you outside of your comfort zone and immerse you into thinking broadly and deeply. Through experiencing TEDMED, you become part of an unbelievable organism and ecosystem that can serve as an amazing, life-changing experience.  

TEDMED is coming soon: April 10th-13th in Washington, DC. We are excited about being there to help foster and participate in the conversation. We encourage you to join us as well and be part of an experience that changes the way you look at the world. We will be very active during the conference on our blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts, so join in our conversations and see how TEDMED can help us find the right design problems to work on together.