November 10, 2025 — If you’re seeking specification solutions for healthcare projects, there are several winners from The Nightingale Awards, a partnership of the Healthcare Design Conference + Expo and Healthcare Design magazine. The jurors, healthcare facility managers and hospital system designers, reviewed products during the show in Kansas City. See “Nightingale Awards honor innovative healthcare products; DIRTT wins Best of Competition for COVE exam module” from October 27 when the winners were announced.
As the founder of The Nightingale Awards in the 1990s, I remain the director of the competition, screening year-round for qualified healthcare juror candidates and coordinating the entries with the manufacturers on behalf of Healthcare Design. The winners are referenced by category, award, manufacturer, product name and a link to the product site. The jurors comments, shared below in italic text, provide the insight that you won’t find elsewhere.
- Architectural Products: Clinical: Best of Competition & Gold Award to DIRTT for COVE
COVE (Clinical Observation Vertical Exam) is outstanding for the efficiency it provides for vertical patients in the ED. One of the best innovations of this product is the noise/sound reduction that has been accomplished once you are inside of the COVE. It also contains all of the items that a practitioner would need for serving an ESI 4 or 5 patient, and a significant number of ESI 3 patients. The reduced lead time for this product compared to the built environment cannot be overstated. I can see use for this in pandemic situations like we had in 2020! DIRTT even showed us what a nurses’ station could look like between bundles of six rooms. There is also an opportunity to have a TV or other visual items on one of the walls in the COVE.
The first of its kind in the prefabrication space for Emergency Care, COVE stood out on the HCD expo floor. Aside from the sleek solutions for everything needed in an Emergency Care Station, the most remarkable thing was the acoustical privacy offered inside COVE, which will totally transform the patient experience in the ED. It was completely comfortable in accommodating care partners and clinicians together within the reduced footprint. COVE could be a game changer!
COVE is an innovative product that has been carefully designed for the efficiency and flow of a busy emergency department, while saving the design team and contractor time during their respective processes. This product appears capable of also better serving the end users and their patients, by lessening a congested ED while providing the patient and their family members comfort and privacy.
- Fabrics & Textiles: Gold Award, a Sustainability Award and Best of Sustainability Award to CF Stinson for Bloomscape
CF Stinson’s collaboration with Hyphyn represents a masterclass in comprehensive, intelligent healthcare textile design in Bloomscape that addresses real-world specification challenges with innovative solutions. This submission excels across every evaluation criterion, but its standout achievement is the revolutionary approach to cleaning protocol compatibility. The fabric selection system that allows specifiers to quickly match textiles to their organization’s specific cleaning products is nothing short of brilliant. This seemingly simple innovation solves a persistent challenge in healthcare design – the disconnect between material selection and maintenance reality.
By creating a clear cross-reference system, CF Stinson empowers facilities managers and designers to make informed decisions that ensure long-term performance and appearance retention.
- Fabrics & Textiles: Silver Award to KI/Pallas Textiles for Reve
KI/Pallas Textiles’ collaboration with Hyphyn presents an exceptionally thoughtful collection with Reve that transcends traditional textile boundaries through its innovative cross-application design potential. This submission stands out not only for its beautiful fabric offerings and solid sustainability credentials, but for its visionary approach to integrated environmental design. The collection’s aesthetic excellence is evident across the entire line – each pattern and texture shows masterful balance between visual interest and timeless appeal.
The ability to carry these patterns seamlessly from textiles into architectural glass etching, wall coverings, and other design elements represents a paradigm shift in creating cohesive healthcare environments.
- Flooring: Resilient: Innovation Award and a Sustainability Award to Mohawk Group for Creative Terrain II
The 100% homogenous flooring property enables facilities management staff to rebuff the floor when it is cut, stained or damaged, adding a tremendous value to the product line. This provides next-level sustainability from a longevity standpoint, while also being recyclable. Combined with the specific adhesive products, the ability to be on the floor 8-72 hours after installation is a game-changer for construction. The glass/metallic chips elevate this collection, giving the product stunning good looks while also being NFSI certified for slip resistance.
Creative Terrain II is amazing; it looks like sophisticated terrazzo, but is homogenous. I don’t know that I’ve ever found homogenous material that can be cut with waterjet. This particular feature makes the material useful in areas such as operating rooms, and wayfinding – two areas that consistently use elaborate designs to mark territory.
- Architectural Products: Non-Clinical: Gold Award to Accurate Lock and Hardware for Transcend: Nina Lichtenstein
Transcend provides a very unexpected design feature integrated into the door handle backplate with its attention to beautiful details. It is a very creative way to add design to the doors and overall project. I applaud the passion from the presenter Nina Lichtenstein, lead designer, and could tell that it was personal. That is appreciated. We also commented, “Why hasn’t anyone thought of this before?” I very much hope to specify this product; the photos do not do it justice.
Transcend offers an elevated and artistic touch to an often stigmatized behavioral health product.
- Flooring: Resilient: Silver Award to Shaw Contract for ColorLink LVT
ColorLink LVT has a textural, grass cloth appearance that emanates a lovely, warm sensibility, yet it has static load properties close to terrazzo. The story behind the design of “color uniting us” and taking inspiration from the way children use color provides feel-good vibes along with textural appearance. The ability to perform quick-replacement with spray-adhesive product adds value for facilities management teams.
- Seating: Guest/Lounge: Gold Award to Integra Seating for Odyssey
Odyssey offers a great balance of beautiful aesthetics, functionality, and sustainability. The pull handle on the back being distanced from the cloth was aesthetically contiguous while useful. The ability to replace the covers is a compelling solution into the future for these pieces.
Beautifully engineered; continuous arm, and a hard surface. Concealed hardware. Reupholstery options with the cover and not having to replace entire seat pans is very useful. Impressive static load at 1200 lbs. is a plus. Odyssey has great design lines with the hand bar integration with the arm rests.
The Nightingale Awards — the industry’s leading program to recognize products related to the healthcare built environment — are named for Florence Nightingale, a tireless advocate for the improvement of care and conditions in military and civilian hospitals in the 1800s. The judging criteria for the awards is the product’s contribution or solution for clinical or operational outcomes; aesthetics and innovation; built environment solution, durability, functionality, and quality; industry certifications and standards; environmental sustainability; and list price. To evaluate the entries, jurors visited exhibitors’ booths before the Healthcare Design Expo opened to examine the products, hear the story of their design and development, and ask questions.
