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Architects for Health 2003 AGM:
Celebrating Excellence in Healthcare Architecture

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Dublin Dental Hospital, Ahrends Burton & Koralek: Introduction

Dublin Dental Hospital, which was founded in 1895, contains the School of Dental Science, one of the constituents of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Dublin, Trinity College. It currently serves 2,500 patients per week and trains 265 students. The completed building provides a total area of 5,800 m² including 3,500 m² of new building and 2,300 m² of existing, which has been totally refurbished and integrated into the new complex.

The facade of the original Victorian building on Lincoln Place has for a long time been identified with the Dental Hospital and also, being in a conservation area, needed to be retained. For reasons of tradition, therefore, as well as economy, it was decided to retain the existing buildings on Lincoln Place, to refurbish these buildings so that they form part of the new hospital complex and to enter the new hospital from Lincoln Place through, or more precisely under, the old building - again, retaining the traditional location of the entrance and maintaining the historic presence of the hospital on Lincoln Place. The new building occupies the site at the rear of the hospital within the Trinity College campus.

We were therefore faced with the need to preserve the old buildings and to keep them operational as a hospital while building a new building on the site behind them - 'behind' seen from Lincoln Place, 'in front' seen from the College.

It was decided to accommodate the clinical functions of the hospital within the new building, which could be designed with appropriate spaces, clear of structure, appropriate ceiling heights and suitable service distribution systems.

On completion of the new building, the hospital moved from the old to the new, vacating the old building so that refurbishment could be carried out. This building now accommodates teaching areas for the dental school so that the whole of the hospital and school are accommodated within a single complex of buildings.

Our main concerns and objectives in the design of the hospital have been:

1. To provide a humane and attractive environment for dental treatment and education

2. To unify the old and new buildings so as to avoid any sense of two separate buildings

3. To provide the buildings with a heart or core which will give them a sense of identity and also unity - the central atrium space fulfils this purpose

4. To design a building which reflects its dual role - clinical and educational

5. A building which addresses both the City and the College and helps to establish links between them

6. A building which fulfils its urban design role in its location - the tower marking the Lincoln Place entrance to College - and which addresses the proposed new square which will be formed in College

The central atrium provides the first impression of the building. A full height space enclosed between the old and new buildings with a fully glazed roof, it contains the main stairs and lift as well as reception and waiting areas and bridge links between the two buildings at all levels. It is the circulation hub of the building.

The atrium may indeed be the heart of the building, but arguably the most important spaces in the building are the clinics. They are to a large degree the raison d'être for the building.

The clinics are located in the new building where provision can be made for the necessarily complex and sophisticated services installations. The clinics are designed to be light and friendly in character, to have a balance of openness and privacy, order and informality. The irregular form of the cubicles avoids a sense of regimentation while the clear circulation pattern establishes an order. The large, north-facing glass walls allow the maximum possible daylight and give a sense of openness tempered by the semi-transparent black fabric external screens which give a degree of privacy. Environmental control is by means of a displacement ventilation system which provides a very low velocity air movement which is both energy efficient and comfortable for the occupants. The detailing and finishes are designed for cleanliness and ease of maintenance although for reasons of economy we have had to rely on paint finishes to a large extent. The elegant and efficient dental chairs by Planmeca in Finland perfectly complement the design of the clinics.

I don't know whether it is more difficult to build a new building around and amongst a working dental hospital, or to run a hospital virtually on a building site. Neither is easy and the exercise has not been without its problems from either point of view. The fact that it has been completed successfully is testimony to the goodwill and cooperation of all those involved.

Paul Koralek