PHOTO TOUR: Helix Forensic Psychiatry Clinic
Completed in November 2012, the Helix Forensic Psychiatry Clinic in Flemingsberg, Sweden, just outside of Stockholm, will serve sentenced violent offenders. BSK Arkitekter (Stockholm) designed the facility for property manager Locum. The security demands are of the highest priority. The complex will also serve as a healthcare facility that regards the integrity of the patients, provides a calm environment, and offers caregivers an efficient and enjoyable workplace.
Keeping patients from escaping (or smuggling items into the complex) affected the design of the 6-meter-high wall, fence, facades, windows, and doors. Alarms, cameras, and lighting also strengthen the physical safety of the environment. The building is situated on top of a hill where most areas of existing nature have been kept intact. The administrative body is placed toward the nearby urban community, which allows the patient wards to face the surrounding nature.
The topography is also used as a visual blind. Rocky heights with pine trees in between the wards distract views from patient to patient. Due to the placement on top of the hill, the walls surrounding the facility are barely visible.
Natural materials have been used as much as possible, where their qualities strengthen the characteristics of each room. For example, the concrete has a relief pattern rather than painted, panels are completely colored throughout, and doors are dressed in oak veneer.
The employee entrance is designed to provide a meeting place for conversation, work, and rest. At the entrance to the building, personnel are welcomed by a large atrium that is accessible and largely visible throughout the administrative areas. With near or direct access from the atrium, teamwork and cooperation are strengthened at the coffee machine, cafeteria, conference rooms, and gym.
The healthcare environment is characterized by light and space with generous ceiling heights and daylight coverage. The four patient wards are built around a “caretaker plaza” where personnel can meet to encourage knowledge-sharing.