[Application of experience from the field of health-promoting architecture in the revitalization of office buildings considering the needs of actively employed seniors].

Abstract

Background: The aim of the article is to answer the question of how to improve the fulfillment of the needs of senior-aged individuals working in offices. To this end, based on experiences gained from designing healthcare buildings, guidelines for designing architecture with a therapeutic function that positively impacts users' health have been formulated. The concept of the system presented in the article is based on a consistent architectural approach aimed at enriching the functional aspects of existing office buildings with health-promoting spaces that enhance users' well-being.

Material and methods: Based on literature, field research, and design analyses, a structural approach to ensuring office workers' access to sunlight and greenery - key for well-being - has been demonstrated. An original system using functional enrichment for revitalizing office buildings in modern urban structures has been developed to meet the specific needs of actively employed seniors.

Results: The research goal set at the beginning led to the development of a variant solution based on the use of the idea of functional enrichment for the needs of locating facilities that allow for the improvement of the comfort of work of professionally active seniors working in offices. It was also shown that the described activity fits into the multidimensional vision of improving the well-being of users defined by the European Commission in the program of the so-called New European Bauhaus (NEB).

Conclusions: The analysis carried out in the article allows for the confirmation of the adopted thesis, according to which it is possible to meet the special needs of senior citizens by revitalizing existing buildings based on the guidelines of pro-health architecture. Such action, through the activation of existing resources, also fits into the guidelines of the NEB idea in a multidimensional way, constituting a coherent model of action, applicable to most existing medium-sized office buildings, with great implementation potential. Med Pr Work Health Saf. 2025;76(4):291-304.