Staging situated negotiation games for (re)designing local healthcare facilities and services
Signe Pedersen, Jens Dorland · Design for Health · 2025
Denmark’s ageing population and the accompanying rise in chronic conditions present significant challenges to an already fragmented healthcare system. This study investigates how negotiation games can enable co-exploration, co-analysis, and co-design to support cross-sector collaboration in Danish Community Health Centres (CHCs). Data collected during site visits, interviews, and workshops with healthcare professionals and managers across Denmark demonstrate that negotiation games developed using the staging negotiation spaces (SNS) co-design framework foster a co-analysis process through meaningful dialogue while aligning agendas and building consensus. This iterative approach encourages double-loop learning, where empirical findings from each negotiation space inform subsequent stages. The results highlight the adaptability of various game types—configuration, ranking, and process-oriented—to suit different research and design phases, from initial exploration to collaborative analysis and development. Facilitators play a crucial role in maintaining engagement through challenges, such as struggling with digital formats. This research contributes to health design literature by showcasing how tailored negotiation games based on the SNS framework can bridge sector divides and promote co-created solutions in complex healthcare settings.