Zhi Jian Fann, who is currently studying at the University of Sheffield, UK, was shortlisted in the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) for the following submission. For contact please email: ara05zjf@sheffield.ac.uk

Elderly Corporation Brief – Conisbrough | The 21st Century Place

Introduction

Eighty is the new sixty-five. The project is entitled Elderly Corporation and it looks at new ways of growing old in Conisbrough.

Early studies uncovered the plight of the elderly and unpaid social carers within Conisbrough and unveiled the global phenomenon of an ageing population.

What if pensioners only get their pensions when they are 80? What are the possible new roles and places for the elderly?

With the growing popularity of Gerontology [study of ageing] and relating to living with my grandmother, the project investigates the design concerns of the elderly and approaches an ideal place to grow old in with a holistic approach to elderly healthcare.

Brief-ly

Located in the northern ex-mining town of Conisbrough, the studio envisions it to be a 21st Century place.

Working on a futures agenda, growing old in Conisbrough means being part of a network, a part of the community.

The Elderly Corporation adopts the structure of an enterprise to provide chances of interaction within the community through the provision of community services that tap on elderly life experiences.

The Elderly Corporation addresses the needs of the ‘young elderly’ to promote an elderly lifestyle while generating a means of financing this greater longevity through the sharing of life skills.

Located in a new linear green park, the studio evocates the collective nature of the different projects to work together to realise identified growth strategies to approach the regeneration of Conisbrough.

Strategy

Located at the slope of the Craggs, between the two separate communities of Conisbrough and Denaby Main, the urban strategy of the Elderly Corporation is one of a collective intensity, connecting the higher ground with the lower ground through a series of new civic spaces while overlaying the elderly routine as a means for chance encounters.

The design vehicle was the elderly design concerns. The effect was based on the notion of interfaces and daily rituals.

Considering the daily routine of the elderly user, addressing their needs through strategic considerations and support all while integrating environmental and sustainable concerns to create a new, brighter place to grow old in.

Specialism

The specialism of the project looked at an ideal elderly living environment at the scale of the apartment.

Support within the apartment for the elderly in their daily routine was translated into a strip of activity that provided infrastructure such as a bench, a place to hang one’s coat, to a seat to wear shoes and store them, storage space, display space, a work desk to a lounge seat in the balcony.

Materiality for the elderly was explored through understanding their preferences using interviews with locals and my grandmother back home in Singapore. Examining preferred colours, textures, functions using a series of play cards as a tool of investigation.

Summary

The intention of the Elderly Corporation is to provide a great place to live in after one’s conventional working life is over.

To be engaged in a fresher living and working environment in the later stage of life. In a brighter future engaged within a community, a part of Conisbrough, the 21st Century place.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Tom Turner, who is currently studying at The Glasgow School of Architecture, UK (RIBA Part 2), was shortlisted in the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) for the following submission. For contact please email: TTurner@rickmather.com

Chinese Health Culture Exchange, Glasgow

Brief: The thesis is a vehicle for personal study, in which the topic is selected by the student in accordance with her or his particular interests and developed in association with the tutorial staff. The project is developed through from concept design to design in detail.

Project Description: The Chinese health culture exchange will be a centre of cultural exchange between East and West; Glaswegians and the Chinese Community in Glasgow. The pro¬gramme of the building focuses on social and health issues. It is both a community centre for the Chinese community and a centre of traditional Chinese health care. This health care includes traditional Chinese medicine as well as various forms of chi cultivation such as tai chi. It is a building that inspires its users to reflect on the way they lead their lives and offers alternative approaches to lifestyle. The idea draws on two existing phenomena; An increasing interest in the UK in the health aspects of traditional Chinese culture such as tai chi and Chinese medicine, and a decentralized, under resourced support network for the Chinese community.

By addressing these two situations the building brings together two communities and offers a platform for cultural exchange.

The relationship between landscape, building and courtyard is key to the success of my scheme with regards to the health aspects of the programme. Traditional Chinese medicine and health practice developed from Taoist thought which took many of its ideas from a close observation of nature. These practices still benefit from contact with the ground and a relationship with the natural world.

The combination of a building protecting a courtyard and stepping up in section suggests the form of a spiral. The idea of a spiral allows a continuous wall to wrap around the courtyard. This wall roots the building in the ground and lifts up whilst spiraling to create a public entrance at street level. From the motorway edge the building can be seen to wrap around a sunken courtyard suggesting to the viewer an inner world within.

Making people more aware of their bodies and the natural environment deals simultaneously with issues of health and sustainability. These issues are evident in the built form of my thesis. Natural ventilation, passive solar gains and rainwater harvesting lead to a healthy building that deals with issues of environmental sustainability.

The programme promotes social integration. The building is both a community cen¬tre for the Chinese and a Chinese health centre for all. The form suggests a private space whilst inviting the public in. Noise pollution from the motorway is dealt with whilst maintaining the view. A courtyard is carved out of the hillside providing an intimate relationship with nature for the privately orientated health practices. A wall emerges from the land¬scape and wraps around the courtyard protecting it and lifting up to create a public entrance. A public route is maintained through the site and is used to bring the public into meaningful contact with the building.

I am proposing a place in Glasgow where the local Chinese community can find help integrating into life in the UK whilst celebrating their rich cultural heritage. A place where Glasweigans can go to find alternatives to the NHS and alternative models for healthy living. Such a place would bring together two diverse cultures and celebrate the qualities that we can learn from each other.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Stephanie Edwards, who is currently studying at The Architectural Association, UK (2nd year, RIBA part 1), was shortlisted in the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) for the following submission. For contact please email: stephanieedwards@yahoo.co.uk

Reconfiguring St Clements Hospital (East London and The City Mental Health NHS Trust)

Brief:

Are hospitals the ultimate ecologies? Can the collision of healthcare and architecture really be analysed? Who are we to challenge the delicate processes of the institution?

Scientific research on the treatment of the mentally ill continually excludes spatial parameters. The project should instigate change within a mental health hospital in London. The year long experiment should shape the unit’s manifesto: to alter the spatial, psychological and organizational systems that defines life within the healthcare environment.

Project and proposal: Reconfiguring St Clements Hospital

Can the collision of healthcare and architecture really be analyzed? As students we were posed with this question at the start of the project. This provoked me to go beyond a formal study and to probe all aspects of the hospital environment, including the dark, but very real, details of everyday life in a mental ward -subjects such as suicide prevention and patient restraint. Throughout the year a host of professionals were consulted and corresponded with. These consisted of National Health Service psychiatrists, ward managers, estates and facilities staff, architects specializing in healthcare buildings, and potential users, in order to craft their individual research and responses. Drawings were then used as tools to reveal the relationship of how people interact with one another or how components make up an environment, where a specific visual representation was invented.

This project defines the conditions for the staff and patients who live and work in St Clement’s hospital, a former workhouse or ‘prison by a milder name’. It explores whether the 1849-era hierarchy extends throughout the hospital today. At the outset, the operational and behavioural aspects on one particular ward were analysed. The intended timetable initiated by the staff was compared with the actual timetable followed by the patients. This displayed the many physical and non-physical restrictions within the ward and its constant fluctuation throughout the day. The initial study probed efforts to flatten the hierarchy, for example through the removal of a formal uniform, and challenged the system within the ward as well as the relationships between staff, patient and visitor. In response to the insight gained, architectural, organizational and urban propositions were made. The process from admission to discharge was scrutinized and redirected to facilitate speedy recovery. The services located at St Clements are gradually being moved to purpose built sites. As areas are abandoned, an urban proposal aims to integrate the community through shared use.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

‘The Sheffield Team’ – comprising David Baldwin, Amy Cheung, Philip Daniels, Simon Grayson, Alexandra Jones, Jeremy Lodge, Anca Milache, Kay Robson and Basim Shamsuddin, all students studying at The School of Architecture at The University of Sheffield – where shortlisted in the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) for the following submission. For contact please email: basim@glennhowells.co.uk

Genito-Urinary Medicine Clinic, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield

Project brief:

Based on the Royal Hallamshire Hospital site, the Department of Genito-Urinary Medicine is the main provider of sexual health care for the city of Sheffield. In common with most G.U.M clinics in the UK, the Sheffield clinic has reached capacity.

The G.U.M Clinic has been allocated 300sqm of additional space to expand existing facilities and the proposed aim was to produce a strategy for expanding the clinic that could effectively link new and existing spaces in a way that was conducive to a positive experience for both patients and staff. As a potentially sensitive clinic a balance was necessary between being open and inviting whilst also retaining a high degree of privacy and confidentiality.

This project was part of the Live Projects programme, where Architecture students worked with a range of clients including local community groups, charities, health organisations and regional authorities. In some cases the projects involve actual building, in others design of urban masterplans, in others consultation exercises. In every case, the project is real, happening in real time with real people.

Project proposal:

Students worked with a client team of medical staff and patients through consultation workshops and meetings before producing a set of generalised G.U.M clinic conditions, aspirations and spatial relations. From this, the team developed a booklet that could be used by others involved in this specialised area of design.

The principles contained within this booklet were then used to develop proposals for the Hallamshire Hospital’s specific circumstances, using an ASPECT assessment tool [a linked research project in the Architecture Department] to understand the existing clinic’s weaknesses and compare improvements.

Having worked closely with the client through design development the student team created a series of proposals which were presented to the Hallamshire Hospital. The design proposals aimed to create a series of spaces, with varying layers of enclosure and privacy, striking a balance between patient and staff needs. The design offers a facility that shuns the institutionalised appearance of a hospital building and instead creates a building that seeks to dispel the stigma that is associated with Genito-Urinary conditions.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Sarah Ernst, who is currently studying at the University of Sheffield, UK (RIBA Part 1), entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: ernst_sarah@yahoo.co.uk

A retirement community, Newfield Green, Gleadless Valley, Sheffield

Offering an alternative for older people

A brief

The brief was to design a site specific retirement community which addresses the new challenge for the profession and society at large of an ageing population. It required research into the needs; health and current accommodation of older people, and revealed the positive impacts of activity, exercise and stimulation on physical and mental well-being. The research generated a discussion on the nature of a retirement community and the implications of designing one as an entity in itself, or an element of a greater community.

A site

The inclusion of a site into the discussion had the potential to influence the brief and direction of the project. The site is Newfield Green in Gleadless Valley in the southwest of Sheffield, an area on the outskirts of the city, with the majority of its housing stock dating back to the 1960s. The existing housing typologies, amenities and landscape of the site surroundings influenced the brief. The brief evolved to focus on the design of a housing scheme for older residents within the Newfield Green area to enable them to remain living within their existing neighbourhood in a sheltered environment until they needed a greater level of care.

A proposal

The design is a scheme that is sensitive to the local environment, encouraging interaction with the landscape and creating a connection to the existing community. The buildings are spread across the landscape, responding to the slope of the land and respecting the existing trees. The key reason behind this approach was to encourage residents to circulate through the landscape for physical and mental health benefits.

The scheme includes accommodation, residents’ facilities, a café and a community centre. The residents’ facility provides social spaces, educational resources and an alternative therapy room while the community centre complements existing local amenities to benefit the wider community as well as residents. It offers multifunctional spaces to accommodate exercise classes, childcare, community cinema and meetings. The design of the community centre and residents’ facilities evolved as a series of layers of activity with varying degrees of enclosure determined by changes in materiality. The transition from public to private is marked by a series of thresholds as the materiality and connection to the ground changes.

Research into housing typologies suggested that terraced housing was environmentally and socially sustainable in terms of heat loss and promoting interaction and a sense of community. The accommodation is organised in two terraces, 6 units of serviced apartments which are closer to the residents’ facility and 12 independent accommodation units. The independent housing is organised as a staggered terrace in groups of two and four living units with shared sunspaces in between. Each unit has a south facing view of the valley, and shares an entry porch with their neighbour. The terrace minimises heat loss and the rammed earth construction acts as thermal mass absorbing heat during the day time and releasing it in the evening.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Sabine Megow and Sophie Michel, who are currently studying at the TU Berlin, Germany, entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: binemarq@hotmail.de, sophet62@yahoo.com

Elementary: A Mobile Health Centre

Brief

The task was to design a mobile health centre, which can be transported to the destination and can be built up very quickly to help immediately in case of a crisis situation. To help quickly the hospital should be build up in phases and should be able to help by completion of the first construction phase.

Design Explanation

The Elementary health care centre is designed as a modular lightweight construction in order to help developing countries or crisis areas. Therefore, it shall help to supply health care in emergency situations and become a clinic that provides prevention, education and enlightment by expansion buildings which provides a lasting health infrastructure in the crisis area.

Since the aim of the Elementary Clinic is to help in developing countries it offers services like preventional medical check ups, supplying medication, health care, medical training and assemblies for the community. This way the clinics´ target is also to be a starting point of infrastucture and communication for the locals.

In order to help as quick as possible in the crisis area, the medical treatment building (1125 sqm) is completely prefabricated and shipped to the destination. There are two container types necessary:

Modular lightweight elements of 2,40m x 2,40m are stacked, framed and can be transported as a 20 feet container.

20 feet Cargo containers are used for transporting the rest of the structural members.

After shipping the containers continue their journey by lorry. At the arrival the modular elements are taken out of the frame and used on the construction, which will take ten days.

The other buildings (expansion: Service, patients rooms and apartments for staff) will be build of the local building material such as bamboo, wood, brick, stone etc. In case there is no building material available at the destination, the buildings can also be build of prefabricated modules.

A modular membrane roof is installed to provide sun and weather protection.

The service building (500 sqm) will be constructed within a month. The patients´, apartments and administrations buildings (450 sqm each) will be constructed within two months. All the buildings are connected with “bridges” and courtyards.

The different users of the clinic are using a corridor system which guarantees a strict and safe separation between visitors and staff members. Short distances between Entrance, triage and emergency rooms secure a smooth order of events in the clinic.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Rosie Rainbow, who is currently studying at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: rosie_rainbow@hotmail.com

The Warapuru Centre, a mental health retreat, Itacare, Brazil

The brief was to design a mental health retreat in an existing building in Itacare, Brazil, as well as to architecturally design an individual bungalow for a specific mental illness.

Proposal

Along with its many beaches, Itacare has many rivers and waterfalls amongst the Atlantic rainforest, the most significant being the Contras River, which constitutes over 10% of the entire state. The name Itacare stems from words itaca, meaning noisy river and re, meaning different. Hence, Itacare means “river of a different noise”. In the past the Contras River was the principle route connecting villages and traditionally these waters are said to be the origin of life.

Water is seen in many cultures and religions to be a way of calming and cleansing the body and the soul. Many mental ill- nesses result from, or lead to a lack of appreciation of ones self and a depreciation of self-image. Water is used in the architecture and the treatment of clients to revitalize and cleanse the body and the mind. The reflective properties of water will be used in the therapy rooms as clients reflect on their life and self and learn to appreciate themselves.

Studies have proven that mental illnesses and mood disorders such as stress, depression and anxiety can be linked to dehydration. Many anti-depressant medications can cause dehydration, so a re-hydration scheme including dietary counselling will be enforced, as a healthy body helps a healthy mind.

The three levels of the building are divided by method of treatment, from passive to active to pro active. Water is used throughout the architecture to link each area, with the water flow increasing with the pace of the therapy. The floor plan consists of two long buildings with adjacent outdoor decks on the top two levels, and the third being completely underground.

G: Reflection

Passive therapy. Still water. Floating above the water.
Upon entering clients are led out onto a platform that appears to float over a reflective pool, overlooking the forest and beach of Itacare. With a library and deck, passive therapy is employed as clients are given time to themselves to relax and reflect. The reflective nature of the pool helps encourage reflection of self and the library promotes research and learning as well as piece of mind.

The pool is made of litra-con, a light transmitting concrete, so the reflections of the fish can be seen from below.

Water flows down.

LG 1: Rehydration

Active therapy. Flowing water. Interaction with the water.
Water flows slowly around the space so clients can have subtle interactions with the flowing water, putting their toes in the water flowing under the benches or eating from the interactive restaurant. Group counselling sessions and therapy classes make up one half of the deck, while the other includes a restaurant wherein food floats over the tables and clients are able to try healthy food and re-hydrate. Assortments of water are given the prestige of fine wines.

Water flows down.

LG 2: Rejuvenation

Pro-active therapy. Rushing water. Emersed in the water
The underground Aquatonic Seawater Therapy Pool contains seawater from the Atlantic Ocean off Itacare’s shore. The salt water is heated to optimum temperatures to rebalance mineral deficiencies and assist in the cure and prevention of physical and mental illnesses. The client makes their way through hydromassage stations at their own pace, through the therapeutic jet streams, micro-bubbles and fountains to rehabilitate injures muscles, relieve stress and aid relaxation. Individual and group therapy rooms are designed to follow a hallway that rises gradually up from the water. Floatation tanks and lap pools are cut into the cliff face.

Water flows down.

Outdoor prayer space

Clients put their fingers in the water as it flows down the handrail of a long passage of stairs to the outdoor prayer space. This non-denominational space is a place of worship for all. Nature becomes the architecture.

Individual bungalow. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

As specified by the brief, the individual bungalow is designed for clients suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder (ocd). The bungalow, in the midst ofthe rainforest is submerged within a pool of water. Clients descend down into the bungalow trough a stairway that divides the pool giving a cleansing feeling, whilst physically separating the bungalow from the nature. The bungalow is designed with perfect ratios and symmetry of the square. Views are manipulated to frame the water, earth, trees and sky. Many people suffering from ocd consider natural materials such as timber to be dirty, so the interior of the building is predominantly sterile white. The windows shutters are designed however with white on one side and timber on the other so clients are able to push themselves by gradually drawing the nature in. The roof is made of beams that can be opened or closed, once again bringing in or locking out the nature. The bed is on a raised platform and is a disposable ‘it’ bed for cleanliness that after the client leaves is donated to charity. As the bungalow is submerged in water, the bathroom has aquatic views.

Warapuru addresses the whole human condition and faculties of the mind in a pro-active design, influenced by the patters and geometry of nature. Mental illness is a significant problem in Western society today and Warapuru’s consideration of subtle meaning and reason in the physical dimensions of its design and its philosophy will bring hope, healing and sanctuary to all its clients making a difference to the life and mental health of its clients.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Robert Galati, who is currently studying at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: robert_g_galati@yahoo.com.au

Renal Dialysis Unit, Oxford Street, Paddington, Sydney, Australia

Brief

The design proposal is to be for a boutique style renal dialysis unit with site constraints in the east of Sydney, in the highly populated and densely urban region of Oxford Street in Paddington.

The renal dialysis unit is to comprise of five dialysis chairs to support outpatients with acute renal failure. These patients will be able to occupy the renal unit within the space which they endure a continuum of care for people with a chronic illness made up of diverse interrelated events.

The services provided for the outpatients are to include special consultation, for renal referrals, pre dialysis service, transplant co ordination and support and outreach clinics.

The site is currently occupied by an existing 3 storey above street concrete frame building which is to be retained and manipulated to facilitate the renal dialysis unit. The surroundings to the site are a BarPub adjacent to the east and a bookshop, west adjacent to the site. This enables only two exposed facades, one facing the highly populated Oxford Street and another facing Iona Lane.

The two street frontages have two very different characteristics, with Oxford Street being a highly popular shopping district with people constantly walking along its footpaths, while Iona Lane has a very residential sense to it being a tree lined street with residential on to the streetscape.

The three storey above street level building plus below ground basement is to be occupied by one floor (of any choice) by the renal unit and the remaining two floors are a flexible design with the choice of occupation dependant on the design scheme. The basement is to remain as a parking area to accommodate for the renal unit and the various uses applied to the remaining floors.

Proposal

The design intention which was motivated by research into health care facilities was for renal unit is not to have the appearance or appeal of a hospital, yet to appear more like a tranquil space to be positioned. with the use of relaxing more natural environments.

The building has been entirely devoted to the renal industry, with the ground floor consisting of a renal resource centre, the first floor occupying the office for Renal Australia, and the third floor resides the Renal Dialysis Unit.

The intention to place the renal Dialysis unit on the top floor is to make maximized use of the sunlight by creating internal and external courtyards. This will create an oasis on top of the building where patients can retreat to in-between treatments or for family members or friends who are with the patients for them to get some fresh air whilst the treatment is being partaken.

Internal and external courtyards which have been naturally landscaped to create an interesting and distracting outlook which will take the patients mind off their treatments. and allow them to feel at ease whilst they receive treatment.

The internal light well allows the opportunity for the natural sunlight to be utilized and by creating a more transparent facade allowing the opportunity for a greater space for the patients visiting the clinic.

The use of the facade treatments on both Oxford street and Iona Lane have been selected to create a individual building, while remaining harmonious to the streetscape. The use of the heavy materials for the column surrounds allows the skeleton of the building to be expressed. The timber slats allow a skin like veil to cover the glazing treatment which permits the busy Oxford Street to filter into the building, whilst the internals of the building are filtering onto the surrounds.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Reuben Barker, who is currently studying at Kingston University, UK (Year 3 of RIBA Part 1), entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: reuben@macdream.net

Health Centre Project: Coram Fields, Bloomsbury, London

The site for this Health Centre lies between Brunswick Sq and the Coram Fields children charity in Bloomsbury, London. The Health Centre contains a pharmacy, practitioners and rehabilitation for those with drug or mental health problems.

The Health Centre also attempts to holistically support the well-being of collective society. It is designed to act as a social node, and encourage interaction. The primary social space allows for healthy activities to be integrated with everyday life. The primary space consists of a restaurant / bar, waiting area and exercise space. It is unified with both Brunswick Sq Park, and the Coram Field’s sports pitches. Health is supported within this space by varied microclimates, allowing thermal comfort to be easily achievable ¹.

The theatrical composition of the primary space allows it to be used for performances. Behind the ‘stage’ a timber frame allows all users their own exhibition space within a singularity. Here they may display whatever they wish. This supports the relationship between the individual, sub-group and wider society and culture. This is especially significant for children and drug / mental health rehabilitation patients. Work opportunities are provided for mental health / drug rehabilitation patients at both the health centre and the satellite intervention 500m to the East.

Kevin Lynch studied the ‘environmental image’ of areas ². Environmental image meaning the understanding people have of their environment, for example a town. Lynch described a coherent environmental image as supporting the well-being of its possessor. I researched what the collective environmental image was of the area surrounding the Coram Fields site ³. This revealed a band of incoherence consuming the site and dividing relatively coherent images of London. This Health Centre project therefore attempts to heal this rift in London. The satellite intervention and modification to the Coram Fields site support this enhancement of the environmental image.

1: Heat has long been associated with health
2: The Image of the City by Kevin Lynch
3: Research based upon general Londoners, site users and students studying the area

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex

Preethi Srikanth and Krystle Wilson, who are currently studying at the College of Architecture Texas A & M University, College Station, USA, entered the Architects for Health’s First Student Health Design Award (2007) with the following submission. For contact please email: preethisrikanth@gmail.com

Hatfield Hospital, Hertfordshire, UK

The objective of the Hatfield Hospital was to create a hospital of the future which serves as a town center for the adjoining complexes. The 1.2million square feet, 920 bed hospital in Hatfield, UK was a semester long challenging third year undergraduate healthcare project.

The initial stages of the project involved a trip to UK for a detailed site analysis and case studies of existing hospitals. In UK. we were introduced to practices of UK healthcare system with the help of National Health Service (NHS) and the Future Healthcare Network (FHN). In short, the task was to choose two key concepts/objectives and design a facility for the future.

To design a healthcare facility one must think from three different perspectives: patients. medical staff and families.

A patient room module on a 10m grid was developed designating patient, clinical and family zones. We accounted for a flexibility of decentralized nursing stations within the inpatient towers. A finger shaped nursing units were created to angle the views from rooms ensuring privacy. Stepping to the south, the towers gave way to healing gardens in between the fingers. Based on evidence (better sanitation, faster recovery and other factors) the future hospital was designed to house 100% single patient rooms.

The hospital is not an institution for the ill but a place for fast recovery and staying fit. Keeping this thought in mind, the project aimed at creating a town center with a central spine connecting two huge neighboring complexes. The ground floor of the facility housed food courts, shops, exhibition centers and hallways and fitness/wellness center inviting people to use and pass through the facility on a day to day basis. We did not want the building to impose on the site but blend into the context.

By incorporating way finding techniques architecture can reduce stress level in families and visitors: Color coded circulation cores and open floor plans helps one in orienting oneself in the huge facility and makes the place livelier. Family waiting areas are placed along the central spine and towards the end of each inpatient tower finger.

From a medical planning perspective, departments are placed keeping in mind easy access and adjacency of various components. For example, the elderly wing is placed on the ground floor and has a separate drop off The Emergency Department is placed for an easy entrance from the highway. The issue of parking has been addressed by providing a certain amount of underground parking (mainly for staff) considering a natural depression of about 5′ to 6′ in the site.

The Hatfield hospital, a facility of future is designed keeping in mind flexibility and advancement of technology. The project was a challenging puzzle with various pieces to it and a good learning experience.

The Architects for Health
First Student Health Design Award
was sponsored by

modulex