The driving principal of this new replacement hospital is to support a new operational plan where patient treatment and care are co-located. The solution is a horizontal hospital where patient beds and treatment are on the same floor. The design employs a number of innovative concepts including the “universal patient room” and a day recovery center with 20 rooms devoted to short stay beds and a linear room array with satellite nursing stations that allow for flexible staffing based on patient volume. The design fosters flexibility through independent extendable circulations systems, open ended planning modules, a simple rectangular floor plate with a regular column grid which will allow for future changes in plan and operation.

The overall aesthetic is about continuity and familiarity; in clinical settings where patient treatment can be intimidating, creating surroundings that are warm and familiar are a way architecture can support the treatment regimen. The building massing, while simple in plan, is articulated at the perimeter to appear to be a number of smaller pavilions; use of brick and stone are intended to compliment the surrounding community. Patient areas have natural light and are designed to create an open and comforting environment. Furniture and materials were selected to create a non-institutional setting.

PROJECT DATA
New Replacement Hospital part of Yale University Medical Center Greenwich Connecticut 180 beds 325,000 gross square feet on five stories, three stories above grade two stories below with and underground parking garage - Mark Chen Principal Designer with Perkins and Will