Sarah Marsh, OTD, OTR/L, EDAC

Healthcare environments are not neutral—they function as clinical interventions. The environment is the constant, commanding force in the choreography of care, shaping human participation, performance, and well-being. Sarah translates this reality into design strategy, identifying where exam procedures hinge on transfer mechanics, wayfinding is constrained by cognitive load, or efficiency rises and falls with spatial sequencing. This principle—supporting equitable human performance in context—is the essence of Sarah’s work.

As an occupational therapist specializing in healthcare facility design, Sarah developed the Functional Engagement Personas™ to connect clinical realities with environmental performance. Large healthcare systems, including The Ohio State University Medical Center, have applied her work to campus-wide facility programming and space planning. She maintains an active clinical license, practicing in brain and spine rehabilitation, bringing firsthand insight to ADL.