The purpose of this thesis was to study the accessibility and the healing in-fluence of the environment and how it is possible to achieve those two in the hospital surrounding. The aim of the thesis was also to find out how to maintain the healing influence and accessibility during the years. The most important research method was enquiry of the personnel of the hospital. Observation was also very important in this study. Part of the theoretical information was found in different documents, literature and research re-sults of the healing gardens and accessibility.

The commissioner of the thesis was the Health Care District of the north-ern Savo, Kuopio University Hospital (KUH). As a result, the develop-ment plan of the environment of KUH Puijo hospital and the maintenance plans for the environment of Puijo hospital and the environment of Julkula psychiatric hospital were made out. The aspects of these plans are the heal-ing influence of the environment and accessibility. The research problem of the thesis was that the utilization degree was very low in these hospital en-vironments. Also the earlier maintenance plans of these hospitals did not correspond the needs of the hospitals and its patients anymore. The theo-retical information and especially the results of the enquiry and observa-tion were used to create the development plan and the maintenance plans.

Based on the research it can be stated that there are plenty of things to de-velop in the hospital environments. The research results showed things that affect on the utilization degree of the hospital environments. The study verifies the importance and the meaning of the subject especially for the Health Care District of the north Kuopio but also nationwide. The study indicates lots of things that must be taken into account when designing new hospital environments or developing the old ones so that a balance be-tween technical requirements and the healing influence of the environment in the hospital environments can be found. Based on the research it can be concluded that accessibility, safety, verdure, colorfulness, nature and calmness are the major things that should be developed.