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Woolpert , a Dayton, Ohio-based architecture, engineering, geospatial, and strategic consulting firm, has acquired Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA; Miami, Fla.), a full-service architecture, engineering, planning, and landscape architecture firm. The deal enhances Woolpert’s ability to provide full architecture, engineering, and interior design services across a variety of markets and accelerates its growth in several sectors, including healthcare. For more news on Woolpert, go here .

Boca Raton Regional Hospital opened the Toby and Leon Cooperman Medical Arts Pavilion on its campus in Boca Raton, Fla. The 61,500-square-foot freestanding facility includes medical specialty clinics for orthopedics, urology, and colorectal care; physician offices; an ambulatory surgery center; and a parking garage. Nelson Worldwide (Minneapolis) was the designer and builder on the three-story facility.

Parkview Health (Fort Wayne, Ind.) has completed expansion of its Parkview Warsaw outpatient center into a full-service hospital called Parkview Kosciusko Hospital in Warsaw, Ind. The project involved adding 88,000 square feet to the existing 86,000-square-foot building The four-story hospital, which  offers inpatient and outpatient care, includes two operating rooms and two procedure rooms on the second floor, as well as areas for pre- and post-surgical care spaces. Additionally, temporary shell space is available to be converted into operating rooms or procedure rooms, depending on future demand. The third floor features an inpatient unit which can accommodate up to 28 patients with varying levels of care. The hospital plans to open with 12 beds, with more added as demand increases. The new hospital also comprises a café, administrative offices, and classrooms on the lower level.

As staff recruitment and retention remain major challenges in the healthcare industry, how can healthcare organizations ensure staff members feel safe in their work environments? This question has been a driving force behind design conversations in recent years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the rate of injuries from violent attacks against medical professionals grew by 63 percent from 2011 to 2018, and hospital safety directors say aggression against staff escalated as the COVID-19 pandemic intensified in 2020. In a 2022 survey by National Nurses United , the nation’s largest union of registered nurses, 48 percent of the more than 2,000 responding nurses reported an increase in workplace violence—more than double the percentage from a year earlier. Safety considerations were previously limited in large part to behavioral health units. However, because of an increase in mental health issues and violence in the general population in recent years, stronger safety consid

Philadelphia-based construction management firm LF Driscoll announced several recent staffing changes. Michael Dikon and Matthew Guinan have been elevated to vice presidents. Dikon, who has been with the firm for 18 years, has worked on projects for Penn Medicine in Philadelphia, as well as Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Joining the firm two decades ago, Guinan has led the construction of more than $2.5 billion of healthcare projects, including work for both CHOP and Penn Medicine. Additionally, Michael Wolfe has re-joined the firm as vice president. Wolfe has been involved in several large-scale healthcare projects including St. Rose Dominican Hospital – San Martin Campus in Las Vegas, Phoenix Children’s Hospital (Phoenix), and University of California San Diego Jacobs Medical Center in San Diego.

Children’s Hospital Colorado Staff Lounge, Aurora, Colorado In need of a larger respite space for staff, Children’s Hospital Colorado (Aurora, Colo.) decided to renovate shell space into an expanded staff lounge into as part of the hospital’s commitment to the well-being of its staff. Working with SmithGroup (Denver), the project team led a series of visioning sessions and in-depth workshops with more than 40 physicians and surgeons. The design team then translated that feedback on staff wants and needs into a modern, light-filled space that’s designed to foster collaboration, relaxation, and rejuvenation. Updating healthcare staff spaces Located adjacent to the surgery platform, the new 3,400-square-foot lounge is more than triple the size of the old one. Designers utilized current wellness and workplace concepts to provide alternative spaces and flexibility within the lounge for users. For example, staff have a choice of collaboration or touchdown spaces as well as places to r

Sharp Rees-Stealy Otay Ranch Medical Center in San Diego has completed the first phase of a $86 million multiphase expansion. Opened in December 2023, the project included a new four-level parking garage with capacity for 610 vehicles. The next phase will add a two-story medical office building (MOB) with an urgent care center, advanced imaging technology, and expanded services. The project team includes HGW Architecture (architect and interior designer; San Diego) and DPR Construction (general contractor; San Diego).

James Pulsipher Regional Cancer Center and Monument View Medical Plaza Opens In Colorado [dek] The 130,000-square-foot project is part of Community Hospital and includes cardiology, women’s health, and pulmonology services. Community Hospital , part of West Healthcare System in Grand Junction, Colo., opened the $81 million James Pulsipher Regional Cancer Center and Monument View Medical Plaza in Grand Junction. The 130,000-square-foot facility houses the new cancer center, which includes Grand Valley Oncology , as well as cardiology, cardiopulmonary rehabilitation, women’s health, and pulmonology services. Community Hospital is a Level III trauma center offering outpatient diagnostic services and inpatient care for the Western Slope region of Colorado and eastern Utah. For more on Community Hospital, go here .

Global design, architecture, engineering, and planning firm HOK is implementing a new regional structure for its healthcare practice to make it easier to build project teams from across the firm and support regional healthcare leaders in business development, strategy, and thought leadership. Chris Korsh and Mitchell Collin are joining Amine Khemakhem, Paul Strohm, and Scott Rawlings as directors of healthcare. Each director will have a geographical focus, including: Amine Khemakhem, West Coast, Asia, and the Middle East Chris Korsh, Northeast, Canada, and UK Mitchell Collin, Southeast Paul Strohm, Midwest Scott Rawlings, National resource for strategic initiatives and design advancement Additional healthcare promotions in the regional HOK studios include Laura Poltronieri to regional leader of healthcare for the Northeast; Karen Carvalho to healthcare practice leader for Florida; Kathleen Schwarz to director of healthcare consulting; and Anthony Roesch as senior healthcare

Åsaheimen Nursing Home, Åsane, Bergen, Norway Åsaheimen Nursing Home was built on a hill in the center of Åsane, Bergen, on the southwest coast of Norway and comprises 100 resident rooms, large common spaces, and outdoor areas. The skilled nursing home offers space for 100 residents with dementia and other diseases that cause deterioration in cognitive function. The goal was to deliver the project using Lean, universal design, and BREEAM Excellent certification for sustainability strategies, including ample natural light and views of the surrounding nature. Maximizing the site The community is organized in four buildings that are situated to adapt within the landscape, creating a variety of outdoor spaces including small gardens and outdoor social areas. Varying in height and color, the buildings give the impression of multiple smaller buildings existing in harmony, rather than one large complex. The exterior façades are designed to be low maintenance, playful, and transparent.

Healthcare Design is once again taking the industry’s pulse with the 2024 A/E/C Survey. From the size and cost of projects completed to the primary drivers behind new work on the boards, we’re asking firms to share a glimpse of how they fared last year. The data reported from participating architecture/engineering and construction firms—including the number of new contracts signed, total healthcare revenue, and a breakdown of project types— will be analyzed for an in-depth state-of-the-industry report, with data shared in the April 2022 issue of Healthcare Design and at hcdmagazine.com. The deadline to respond is Feb. 16 . Please note that only one submission per firm is permitted; participating firms must U.S.-based and have completed at least one healthcare project in 2023. Here’s a link to coverage of the 2022 A/E/C Survey for an example of how this valuable data helps to tell the industry’s story. Complete the survey online here: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7677600/2024-H

The University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS; Philadelphia), part of Penn Medicine (Philadelphia), is acquiring nonprofit Doylestown Health (Doylestown, Pa.). The deal will expand UPHS’ network into Bucks County, Pa., and includes the flagship Doylestown Hospital, a 247-bed teaching facility in Doylestown. The acquisition will build on UPHS’ and Doylestown Health’s existing relationship. For example, Doylestown Hospital is part of the Penn Cancer Network , a group of hospitals and physician practices that collaborates with Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center throughout the Philadelphia area. Doylestown Hospital will become the seventh hospital under the UPHS umbrella.

Architecture and design firm Little Diversified Architectural Consulting (Charlotte, N.C.) has promoted Helena Cheung to healthcare studio principal, based in the firm’s Orlando, Fla., office. Cheung joined Little in 2020 and previously served as a senior project architect and project manager at the firm. She has more than a decade of experience in the industry, including her work as a project architect at RLF (Orlando).  

Architecture and interior design firm Plunkett Raysich Architects LLP (Milwaukee) promoted Jedd Heap to partner in the Sarasota/Bradenton, Fla., region. In his new role, Heap will continue to work with Florida design clients and help make strategic decisions. In his three years with Plunkett Raysich Architects, he has been involved in several healthcare projects including Suncoast Orthopaedic Surgery & Sports Medicine in Venice, Fla. He’s also slated to work on projects for Premier NeuroSpine Institute in Pinellas Park, Fla., and Dolphin Medical Group in Parrish, Fla.

In 2013 I sat down to write my first blog for Healthcare Design , introducing myself as the newest member of the editorial staff. I was coming from a 10-year post covering retail design, where I thought I’d learned the language of architects and designers and how to cover layout planning, lighting, wayfinding, materials and finishes, and all the other details that go into the built environment. However, one interview into a flooring trends article, I realized healthcare was a different animal. Feeling a little overwhelmed by building codes, facility types, and project team members’ roles, I picked up the phone and began talking to sources and meeting industry leaders at our conferences and events. And I soon realized how committed the healthcare design community is to knowledge sharing to help drive this industry (and an editor’s understanding of it) forward. Healthcare Design brand and sector evolves Eleven years later, this sector has evolved quite a bit in the time I’ve been cov

National design and build firm Kai Enterprises (St. Louis) promoted James Lawrence to architectural studio leader at its Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, office. Lawrence’s responsibilities include managing the firm’s healthcare team and providing leadership and direction on projects. He joined Kai in 2022 as a senior project manager. Before joining the firm, Lawrence served as senior project manager at Mel/Arch Architectural Studio and as a senior project leader at GFF Architecture & Planning , both located in Fort Worth.

Healthcare Design  is now accepting reservations for the 2024 Design Showcase. The annual awards program honors the best design and architecture—built and unbuilt—in the healthcare design industry. Reservations are due March 1, with presentations due March 29. All projects will be reviewed by a jury of architects, interior designers, providers, and consultants. Those accepted for the program will be published in the August issue of  Healthcare Design . Jurors will also give Award of Merit and Honorable Mention honors to the highest-scoring projects, with finalists recognized for outstanding achievement. Additionally, winners will be celebrated during the magazine’s annual awards luncheon at the  2024 Healthcare Design Conference + Expo  , taking place Oct. 5-8, in Indianapolis. For competition details and to enter, click here . Contact Donna Hidalgo at donna.hidalgo@emeraldx.com or (210) 419-9017 for more information.  

Healthcare and senior living strategy, design, construction, and development firm Erdman (Madison, Wis.) has promoted Janet Lively McCauley to vice president of healthcare. Lively McCauley will work with other senior leaders to define the healthcare business development strategy, lead business development and corporate marketing, and spearhead the team’s efforts to connect and collaborate with healthcare leaders. She joined the firm in 2022 as vice president, business development – healthcare. In 2023, she began overseeing the firm’s marketing department. For more on Erdman, go here .

Integrated health system Bassett Healthcare Network in Cooperstown, N.Y., opened a new hybrid cardiac operating room (OR) at Bassett Medical Center , its acute care, inpatient teaching facility in Cooperstown. The 1,000-square-foot project, which aims to expand rapid care for patients with cardiac emergencies, includes a complete cardiac catheterization lab. The space also will be used for transcarotid artery revascularization, a minimally invasive procedure that can clear blockages and open a narrowed carotid artery. For more on cardiac care design, go here .

Submissions are now being accepted for the 2024 Healthcare Design Product Innovation Awards , an annual program that honors advancements in the design of products serving the healthcare design sector. Manufacturers of healthcare design products, including furniture, lighting, technology, flooring, surfaces, and other design products introduced to the healthcare industry within the last three years (March 2021 to present), are eligible. Prototypes or products not currently being sold are not eligible for this program. Entry reservations are due Feb. 1, and presentations are due Feb. 12. Jurors, appointed by  Healthcare Design , will review all presentations and decide on a list of top-scoring finalists. Submissions will be evaluated for innovation and contribution to the design of the healthcare environment, including enhanced safety, improved patient comfort, reduced installation/maintenance costs, environmental sustainability, and/or products that solve a specific challenge. The t

Montgomery County in Conroe, Texas, is planning a $50 million mental health center in Conroe, according to the website houstonchronicle.com . Situated adjacent to Montgomery County Mental Health Treatment Facility, the new center will house 100 beds and is slated to be completed in June 2025. The state will fund the facility’s operations, which will be outsourced. For more on mental health design, go here .

Elisha M. Lorenzi (Headshot credit: Hocking Hills Portraits) The owner of EML Interiors LLC (Lancaster, Ohio) shares the design revelation from her first project, a stress-relieving item on her desk, and what career she’d rock if she wasn’t an interior designer. What drew you to a career in interior design for the healthcare sector? I always wanted to be an interior designer, but it wasn’t until my internship at architecture and planning firm Karlsberger, in Columbus, Ohio, that I realized healthcare design would be my passion. That summer internship ended up evolving into a full-time interior designer position. Working with Lisa Frasure, a senior interior designer at the firm, forever changed the direction of my design career, showing me the importance and the impact healthcare designers can make in this world. She’s still my mentor, 24 years later. What was your first healthcare project? The McConnell Heart Hospital and Emergency Department at OhioHealth—Riverside Methodist H

Maimonides Children’s Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., part of Maimonides Health (Brooklyn), has expanded its neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with 17 beds, bringing the facility’s total to 48 beds. As part of the expansion, patient room beds are outfitted with cameras, allowing families to see their child through an app. For more on NICU design, go here .

Cullman Regional Medical Center completed a $30 million, two-phase expansion project on its campus in Cullman, Ala. The project added a four-story bed tower and 30 new beds to the hospital’s critical care and medical/surgical units, bringing the facility’s total bed count to 175. The new critical care rooms feature advanced technology with therapeutic and patient safety features. The hospital also plans to open an outpatient facility and a freestanding emergency room this summer.

Hair of Istanbul Hair Transplant Clinic, Turkey Hair of Istanbul is a hair transplant clinic located in the residential district of Ataköy in İstanbul, Turkey. The 4,800-square-foot replacement facility involved the merging of two former residential apartment units to accommodate the clinic’s expanding program and patient profile as well as deliver an updated aesthetic for the clinic. Nature-inspired design features The clinic opened in August 2022. To create a healing place, the clinic design is wrapped around the idea of a “digital forest” and the idea of nature to create a connection to recovery. The project incorporates biophilic design , including the use of vibrant green tones, natural wood materials, and living green walls in both of the circulation areas and the operational zones. To support the idea of a sterile, clean environment for services, the design features a minimalistic approach with easy-to-clean surfaces and the use of white color in different materials includ

University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health , part of University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS; Baltimore), held a ribbon-cutting celebration for UM Upper Chesapeake Medical Center Aberdeen, in Aberdeen, Md. The 130,000-square-foot project includes an emergency department (ED), observation care area, helipad, and a behavioral health pavilion for inpatient and outpatient care. Among the design features are patient rooms with telehealth systems and select ED rooms designed to geriatric standards with padded floors, signage with larger fonts, and bright lighting. The behavioral health pavilion includes an exterior courtyard and conference rooms for community use. Additionally, the medical campus opened a 93,000-square-foot health and wellness center in late 2023, which offers a range of clinical services including primary care, endocrinology and diabetes care, cardiology, hematology and oncology, infusion services, wound care, orthopedics, physical therapy, and rehabilitation.

Integrated health system Virginia Mason Franciscan Health (Seattle), Olympic College (Bremerton, Wash.), and Kitsap County Board of Commissioners (Port Orchard, Wash.) are partnering on the first phase of a new regional health sciences campus in Poulsbo, Wash. The project’s first phase, which is expected to take two years, will add a new health science programs, including dental assistance and hygiene, emergency medical technician, paramedic, and phlebotomy. Phase 2 will comprise a new 40,000-square-foot health sciences building that will house a primary care clinic, learning spaces, and administrative office spaces.

Headshot credit: Niada Parker / TVS In this series, Healthcare Design  asks leading healthcare design professionals, firms, and owners to tell us what has their attention and share their ideas on the subject. Niada Parker is associate principal, director of healthcare at architecture, interior design, and planning firm TVS (Atlanta). Here, she shares the top five trends and issues getting her attention right now, including the demand for airborne isolation rooms, modular design, and behavioral health care spaces. Isolation rooms During the COVID-19 pandemic, many facilities struggled with how to transition existing spaces to airborne- and contact-isolation rooms. Today, facilities are responding with whole-building strategies that give more thought to specific HVAC needs, from independent exhaust to stacking patient rooms. Isolation rooms should also provide some flexibility for a range of healthcare services so that patients don’t have to be moved from one room to another.

Intermountain Healthcare (Salt Lake City) opened an ambulatory surgery center and recovery hotel in Murray, Utah. The 50,000-square-foot project, which is designed to U.S. Green Building Council LEED Silver certification, houses eight orthopedic operating rooms (ORs) and a 16-room recovery hotel for postoperative care. E4H Environments for Health Architecture (Salt Lake City) provided planning, architecture, and interior design services on the project. The project team also includes Big-D Companies (construction; Salt Lake City), VBFA (MEP; Salt Lake City), HGA (structural engineer; Salt Lake City), Great Basin (civil engineering; South Odgen, Utah); and Spectrum (lighting; Salt Lake City). For more on Intermountain Healthcare, go here

Observing the evolving needs within healthcare systems to adapt to shifting patient populations and clinical requirements, whether at a single location or across multiple sites, Brewer Company (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) saw an opportunity for versatility in medical equipment. Its Versa Exam Table is designed to deliver on that front with an adaptable fixed-height design that can smoothly transition between pediatric and adult configurations. At the 2023 Healthcare Design Conference + Expo, Nightingale Awards jurors lauded the product for solving a multitude of needs from workflow to patient assistance. The exam table earned two awards in total, including Gold in the Furniture: Clinician Support category and the sought-after Best of Competition prize. Updating the healthcare exam table Specifically, the table features a fixed steel base with interchangeable adult and pediatric top configurations, allowing healthcare systems to easily adapt to different patient populations, medical sp

UPMC (Pittsburg) broke ground on the Hillman Cancer Center at Zabok General Hospital in Croatia, approximately 25 miles from the country’s capital city of Zagreb, according to the website inside.upmc.com . The new cancer center will provide advanced radiation oncology, medical oncology, and PET-CT diagnostics to patients in Croatia and neighboring countries including Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. The facility is expected to open in 2025. For more on cancer care design, go here .

Global architecture and engineering firm HDR (Omaha, Neb.) has named John Henderson as its new CEO. Henderson  previously served as the firm’s president and COO. He succeeds Chairman and CEO Eric Keen, who will remain chairman of HDR’s board of directors. Replacing Henderson as president and COO is Neil Graff, who previously served as the firm’s director of U.S. and North America operations. For more on HDR, go here .

Nonprofit Catholic healthcare organization OSF HealthCare (Peoria, Ill.) is planning a $17.8 million expansion project at St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, Ill., according to the website beckershospitalreview . The project will add 25 inpatient beds, 10 medical/surgical beds, and 15 intensive care beds to the 149-bed hospital. Construction on the project is slated to begin in early 2024 and open to patients by the end of 2026. For more on OSF HealthCare, go here .

Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute in Columbus have opened a $100 million proton therapy center. The 55,000-square-foot facility offers comprehensive radiation oncology treatment options for adult and pediatric patients, including conventional and high-dose proton therapy.

Nonprofit health system UCHealth (Aurora, Colo.) broke ground on a $280 million expansion project at Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, Colo. The project will add a five-story tower on the north side of the hospital and a cancer center as well as expand emergency department (ED), imaging, and cardiac spaces. Specifically, the patient tower will house surgical intensive care, progressive care, and trauma surgical units and a radiation oncology department with a linear accelerator. The new cancer center will feature a new gynecological oncology clinic, medical oncology clinic, and infusion center. The ED will expand to include 22 new patient care rooms and a new entrance. Additionally, a new cardiac catheterization lab, structural heart lab, and vascular lab will be added to the south side of the hospital. Expanded imaging services will include additional CT, ultrasound, and MRI services as well as an interventional radiology suite on the east side of the hospital. Parkin