Zorana Matic, Ph.D., is a researcher and educator trained as a designer. Currently, she is a Lecturer at the School of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology, and a researcher at SimTigrate Design Lab, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, USA.
Her research focuses on the links between the built environment, health, well-being, and sustainability. She examines the impacts of our built environments on behavioral choices and health outcomes at different scales, leveraging her expertise in spatial and ergonomic analysis.
In 2016, she joined the SimTigrate Design Lab, where she was deeply engaged in healthcare design research and the field of evidence-based design. She worked on a number of projects: Biocontainment Unit Design for staff safety and improved patient experience during pandemic (2014-2016 Ebola Outbreak and COVID-19 in 2020), Patient-Centered Medical Home Clinic analysis (US Defense Health Agency), exam-room design for better users' experience, etc.
By integrating evidence, mock-up simulation, observation, rapid prototyping, and co-design with the end-users, she aims to develop design solutions that support improved user experience, better communication and teamwork, efficiency, and automate safer behavior. For her research on the impact of environmental design on safe doffing of personal protective equipment (PPE) after providing care to Ebola patients, she was awarded the 2020 Researcher of the Year Award (Healthcare Design Magazine).