Should hospitals have separate seating areas for bariatric patients? 39.5% - Yes, the bariatric population needs to be catered to in public places 60.5% - No, special seating may embarrass bariatric patients COMMENTS - I do not think it is an embarrasment problem. I...
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How healthcare's first LEED Platinum Project got it done
Photography: @ John Durant Photography It began with a feasibility study done in 2002 by Karlsberger, the Columbus, Ohio-based Architecture firm, on the expansion possibilities of the Children's Hospital of Austin. The study showed there was limited room...
Navigating the choppy waters of the financial downturn
“Make no little plan. They have no magic to stir men's blood.” -Daniel Burnham, father of the Chicago master plan, in 1909 Travel freezes, capital projects being put on hold or cancelled altogether, layoffs, declining sales: These are the topics of daily discussion...
The First 15 Feet
Let's start at the very beginning” may apply as much to designing an acute care patient room as to learning to sing. Much is written about patient room configuration and the importance of understanding the implications of choices in layout (same-handed or mirrored...
Finding a Balance between Capital Costs and Life-cycle Goals
As a new frugality motivates Americans to do more with less in this recession, healthcare leaders likewise have adopted a similar mindset. Colleague Joe Madda, AIA, LEED AP, in HGA’s Los Angeles office, notes that the economic slowdown likely will bring some...
ASID: Bariatric Design: An Emerging Concern for Healthcare Designers
Ever since height and weight statistics were first compiled in 1960, the average weight of the general population has continually increased. According to the American Obesity Association, 127 million people or over half of the adult population is classified as...
The digital transition
In publishing circles, the debate has been raging for years now. With the closing of some high-profile daily newspapers and monthly magazines around the country, that debate has come to the general public, as well. The question at hand: In this instant-information age...
Interior design for rural healthcare
Photograpsher: Jerry Swanson At Mercy Medical Center, the addition of conference and event centers allows hospitals to become an integral part of their rural communities Bigger is not always better for interior designers who work on healthcare projects. Small projects...
Improvements and upgrades are necessary and desirable, but require careful planning and prioritization
Twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year-hospitals are some of the most vital facilities in society, and the mission-critical nature of the equipment and requirements of operating time make them extremely expensive to operate and maintain. Given today's economy, it is...
Meridian Health and Cornell University team up to study Jersey Shore University Medical Center's Transforming Care project
When planning of the $300 million expansion and renovation of Meridian Health's Jersey Shore University Medical Center began approximately five years ago, the architects, administrators, physicians, and staff envisioned a project that would dramatically change the...
Having a fully integrated design and construction team
Managing budget pitfalls in hospital construction











