The burgeoning mental health crisis is putting pressure on healthcare organizations across the country. Impacts include extended wait times in emergency departments and increased staffing levels due to a lack of beds appropriate for this patient type. While adding mental health beds is an important step in addressing the crisis, training the next generation of behavioral health providers is an urgent need as well.

Opened in May, the new Center for Behavioral Health and Learning at UW Medicine in Seattle stands as a forward-thinking solution to this challenge, serving as an innovative model for patient-centered mental health care, medical care, and workforce training.

Designed by SRG + CannonDesign (Seattle), the 184,000-square-foot building is integrated into the larger UW Medicine campus, adjacent to UW Medical Center Northwest Hospital, and houses the hospital’s main cafeteria.

This integration destigmatizes mental healthcare by fostering an environment that encourages open dialogue and understanding of behavioral health issues among visitors to the campus.

Specialized behavioral health services

Like much of the country, Washington State is seeking ways to treat its more than 1.26 million residents with mental health disorders. According to the Washington State chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Health, only about a third of these individuals currently receive adequate care. Funded in full by the Washington State Legislature, the new Center for Behavioral Health and Learning addresses these critical gaps by increasing the region’s capacity to support individuals and families facing serious and persistent mental health and medical challenges.

Mental health disorders often require longer-term treatment, a tailored regimen of care that is often not seen as compatible with acute physical conditions. The 150-bed center is designed specifically for patients facing both acute mental health and acute medical concerns.

Some of the key services offered in this building include 75 beds for patients receiving court-ordered treatment, which can require up to 180 days of intensive mental health treatment. Additionally, the facility houses The Garvey Institute Center for Neuromodulation on the first floor, which provides electroconvulsive therapy, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and other cutting-edge treatments for both inpatients and outpatients; 25 beds for patients aged 60 or older; and 50 medical/surgical beds, with some outfitted to treat those with both mental and physical health conditions.

Another feature of the Center for Behavioral Health and Learning is space reserved on the second floor for a future Emergency Psychiatric Assessment, Treatment and Healing (EmPATH) unit, designed to divert individuals with acute mental health needs away from the neighboring emergency department and into a space better equipped to address mental health crises.

Safe, welcoming design

Unlike typical mental healthcare facilities that are often placed in less trafficked areas, the building’s prominent location promotes visibility and acceptance. The exterior design balances transparency with privacy and campus integration while being a distinguished focal point. For example, large patient windows and the double-height lobby on the main floor create a welcoming and open environment for the entire campus.

Woven metal fabric on porch-like areas of each patient unit and the large, landscaped terrace on the fourth floor provide privacy from the outside as well as expansive views to the outdoors, city skyline, and Mount Rainier in the distance. Terracotta along the main patient façade and textured concrete panels in the therapy area reflect the appearance of existing masonry buildings on campus in an elevated, modern design that emphasizes the entry and healing spaces.

The project team used elements of trauma-informed design to help reduce patient stress. These design elements emphasize natural light, scenic views, and privacy. A soothing neutral palette with warm wood accents creates a calming atmosphere, and daylit open-concept social and dining spaces contribute to a restorative and inclusive environment. There is also an indoor/outdoor dining space on the ground level open to the public, further minimizing the impression that mental healthcare spaces need to be walled off from other medical care.

Flexible and adaptable units

Using a design-build delivery model on the project provided an opportunity for meaningful collaboration among the risk reward partners, which included Clark / Abbott, A Joint Venture (general contractor; Seattle), Veca Electric & Technologies (Seattle), McKinstry (Seattle), Performance Contracting Inc. (Seattle), Schuff Steel Company (Bellevue), and Queen City Sheet Metal & Roofing (Seattle).

The top three floors feature flexible behavioral health inpatient units designed to support various acuity levels and patient types. The sixth floor of the building, for example, provides psychiatric care for patients aged 60 and over, many of whom also have mobility challenges and additional medical needs.

With three mental health patient floors placed atop two medical/surgical units, the design team worked to standardize the structural grid in a way that maximized room layout and space efficiency. The selected 33-foot structural grid accommodates groupings of three mental health patient rooms on top of modules of two medical/surgical beds. Additionally, each mental health patient unit can be divided into two sub-units as patient populations change over time.

Rather than providing dedicated group therapy, consultation, and activity rooms within each sub-unit, the circulation routes on each unit are configured to provide separate access to shared spaces from each side, maximizing building flexibility and efficiency. Additionally, open-concept social and dining spaces create a residential atmosphere fostering serenity and comfort while adjacent spaces that are smaller and semiprivate provide opportunities for patients to find respite and quiet.

Future workforce training

With nearly half of Washington State’s counties lacking a practicing psychiatrist, the building also plays a crucial role in training the next generation of mental health practitioners. The University of Washington School of Medicine’s educational mission influenced the design, resulting in dedicated spaces for learners that facilitate collaboration among students, supervisors, and professionals, including those studying to be psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, nurse practitioners, social workers, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and pharmacists.

Specifically, dedicated workrooms on each inpatient unit provide collaborative space where faculty and students can discuss cases and treatment plans. Patient spaces are sized larger than code minimum to comfortably accommodate larger care teams. The facility is also home to a pioneering telepsychiatry program that supports clinicians statewide, providing psychiatric advice that enhances the reach and effectiveness of mental health services, particularly in underserved areas.

“In designing this building, our focus was on creating a welcoming and safe environment to promote healing and recovery,” says Cindy Hecker, CEO at UW Medical Center.

Read more news about UW Health’s Center for Behavioral Health and Learning here.

Aimée Duquette, AIA, is a senior associate and architect at SRG + CannonDesign (Seattle) and can be reached at [email protected]. Lori Epler, AIA, LEED, EDAC, is a principal and senior healthcare planner at SRG + CannonDesign and can be reached at [email protected].

 

Project details

Project: University of Washington Medicine Center for Behavioral Health and Learning

Location: Seattle

Completion date: May 2024

Owner: University of Washington Medicine

Total building area: 184,000 sq. ft.

Total construction cost: $250 million

Cost/sq. ft.: $1,358

Architect: SRG+CannonDesign

Interior designer: SRG+CannonDesign

Design engineers: Thornton Tomasetti in collaboration with Lund Opsahl (structural); Mazzetti in collaboration with Modern Mechanical, Bogard Engineers, and The Greenbusch Group (mechanical/plumbing); PAE Engineers (electrical); HLB (lighting); KPFF in collaboration with CM Design Group (civil); OJB Landscape Architecture in collaboration with Osborne Consulting, Inc. (landscape)

Signage/wayfinding: Mayer Reed, Inc

Food Service: Ricca Design Studios

Art consultant: WA State Art Commission selected Hernan Paganini

Hardware Consultant: Allegion

ADA Consultant: Studio Pacifica

Carpet/flooring: Tarkett, Mannington, Stone Source, Altro, Johnsonite

Ceiling/wall systems: Daltile, Stone Source, Valhalla, Armstrong Ceiling, Turf Beam, Certainteed

Doors/locks/hardware:  Acudor, Von Duprin, Schlage, Ives

Millwork: ISEC (fabricator)

Fabric/textiles: Carnegie, Maharam

Furniture—seating/casegoods: WorkPointe, OpenSquare, Catalyst, Keeny’s, SystemSource, Nemschoff, Boss Design, Keilhauer, Landscape Forms, Coalesse, Kwalu, Humanscale, OFS, Lazyboy Healthcare|Knu, Norix, Steelcase, Stance, Pineapple, Heartwork, Hallowell

Handrails/wall guards: Inpro, Acrovyn, Altro, Marlite, Construction Specialties

Accessories: Whitehall, Bobrick, Behavioral Health Safety Products, Scranton

Fixtures: Whitehall, Kohler, Elkay

Shades: Inpro, Skyco Architectural Shading Solutions

Headwalls/booms: Amico

Lighting: Alphabet, Finelite, Focal Point, Hubbell, Kenall, WAC Lighting, Kelvix Lighting

Surfaces—solid/other: Corian, Wilsonart, McNichols, Jewell Hardwoods, Brookside Veneers,

Elevators: Kone

Facade: TAKTL, Morin, Northclad, Argeton, Mutual Materials, GKD, Wasau (pavers)

Windows/Curtainwall: Wasau, Kawneer

For an expanded list, visit hcdmagazine.com. Project details are provided by the design team and not vetted by Healthcare Design.