We'll send you "Disinfection Sensei" to sanitize both hands and hearts!

What is "Hospitality"?

Hello, I'm copywriter Yukio Hashiguchi. This might be sudden, but do you like hospitals? I get nervous in front of doctors, often can't understand what they say, and struggle to follow their instructions. The long waits at hospitals are exhausting too. Since most hospitals feel like this, it seems few people genuinely love them. I'm the same.

To change this situation, a group of planners, copywriters, and art directors within Dentsu Inc. came together and started a project called "HOSPITAL-TY." The project name is a portmanteau combining "hospital" and "hospitality."

For example, theme parks have all sorts of thoughtful touches designed to welcome guests. That's why you can somehow endure the wait times for attractions and still have a fun day. We thought hospitals could do the same – create thoughtful touches that help patients enjoy their time and approach treatment with a positive attitude.

Initiatives at Mihara Memorial Hospital

It all started when we received a consultation request from Mihara Memorial Hospital in Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture. Hospitals face numerous challenges. Among them were long waiting times, hospital-acquired infections, and issues like patients' motivation for treatment and daily behavior—many problems that couldn't be solved by medical care alone.

Through repeated discussions, we discovered a key point: "Changing patients' awareness and behavior leads to solving these challenges." Previously, hospital communication tended to be one-sided, conveying logic like "Do this for that reason."

But no matter how many times you're told, "Disinfect your hands to prevent influenza and norovirus," it's easy to skip it, right? Rather than persuading through logic, we appealed to emotions and aimed to make it enjoyable. That's what leads to changes in patient behavior. Based on this hypothesis, we developed three ideas.

To make patients feel a connection, we gave each a character-like name like "Dr. ○○." In this series, we'll introduce the "Dr. ○○" behind these three products. First up is the debut of the first doctor!

Hospitality Development Product 1: Disinfection Doctor

As the face of Hospitality, "Disinfection Doctor" welcomes patients at the hospital entrance. You saw him at the start of this column. Pressing the pump dispenses sanitizer and displays a "wise saying" on the screen to cleanse the heart. The goal is for people to enjoy using it, not see it as an obligation, ultimately leading to disease prevention.

Hand sanitizing needs to become a daily habit. If people get bored after just a day or two, it loses its meaning. That's why we prepared a total of 100 different quotes. Three copywriters, including myself, divided up the writing.

"Your disinfection protects others' health too."
"What kind of person are you? Just look at their hands, and you'll pretty much know."
"Why not shake hands with someone using your sanitized hands?"
"Sometimes you need the courage to be disliked. Especially by germs."
"There are people more important than yourself. That's what being an adult means."
"Beyond the clouds, the sky is always blue."
"Sometimes, looking uncool is actually cool."
"After a downpour, a rainbow always appears."
"Why not get some early sleep tonight? By morning, your heart will be disinfected."
"People who attract germs don't attract humans."

Design-wise, we needed to make people feel affection for an otherwise sterile disinfector. However, it must be immediately clear that this is a disinfector. We carefully balanced these two points, designing a character that utilizes the original disinfector's shape.

Using white and pink, we expressed the cleanliness of medical settings and the character's warmth. Additionally, when quotes appear on the screen, we added a "pop-pop" sound effect. This creates a sense of speech, a performance to make the character feel like a person.

 

Since Disinfection Sensei is used daily, delivery isn't the end of the process. After installation, we research patient reactions and adjust usability as needed. Many hospital visitors are elderly, leading to unexpected reactions that reminded us of the challenges in product design.

Currently, Disinfection Sensei is installed at the hospital entrance, greeting patients. Separately, a screenless "mass-production model" is installed in 10 locations: patient rooms, billing, offices, and community consultation counters. While it doesn't deliver famous quotes, its adorable design makes you want to touch it.