Earning Fundas

University of Rochester Medical Center – UR Medicine opened the Acute Brain Injury NeuroRehabilitation Unit at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y., according to the website spectrumlocalnews.com . The $7 million unit includes 11 beds and supplements the existing 20-bed acute inpatient rehabilitation unit at Strong Memorial Hospital. The project offers comprehensive rehabilitation and support services for adult and pediatric patients recovering from strokes, traumatic brain injuries, and other types of acute acquired brain injuries.

Historically, a severe underinvestment in mental health resources has left counties and cities with the responsibility of responding to people in crisis in facilities not intended for such purposes, such as justice centers and emergency departments. This response has been often utilized to contain people in crisis, treating mental illness as a public safety issue rather than a healthcare concern. This leads to poor patient outcomes, incurring high costs to taxpayer resources, and leaves families still searching for effective ways to help their loved ones following these interventions. Growing need for crisis care Reshaping the approach to crisis care, healthcare providers are expanding existing clinical programs to offer more outpatient resources. Larger and more progressive systems are developing new clinical centers with specialized treatment programs to better respond to varying acuity levels of mental health patients. These initiatives are alleviating emergency room overcrowdi

Sanctuary Centers (Santa Barbara, Calif.), a nonprofit focused on mental health and community wellness, broke ground on a new five-story mental health and housing facility, in Santa Barbara, according to the website ksby.com . The 34-unit project will house medical, dental, and mental health services on the basement and first floor. Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant housing will be located on the top four floors. The facility is slated for completion in December 2025.

Linaea Floden Headshot credit: Ryan Companies With the evolution of healthcare procedures and processes, hospitals and patient care facilities are increasingly finding value in adapting the design of interior spaces to best meet the changing needs of patient populations and providers. The advancements in robotic and less invasive surgical procedures and the shifting popularity of telehealth have necessitated greater flexibility in healthcare design, in addition to the simple fact that we don’t have a crystal ball to show what the future may hold. As healthcare providers saw during the pandemic, adapting to changing procedures and treatment methods was crucial in caring for patients and keeping staff safe during an unprecedented time. That adaptation now demands that the design of new healthcare facilities deliver the power of plasticity to better align with shifting needs. While the cost of flexibility could be significant, particularly in rural regions where public funding is m

Westchester HealthAlliance, Kingston New York WMCHealth (Valhalla, N.Y.), which operates nine hospitals throughout New York’s Hudson Valley,  incorporated HealthAlliance (Kingston, N.Y.), a 315-bed healthcare system, into their existing network in 2016. In late 2022, as part of a multiyear Healthy Neighborhood Initiative, which aims to bring medical, educational and economic benefits to the historic waterfront Hudson Valley city, the organizations moved to consolidate two existing hospitals in Ulster County, N.Y., into one acute care hospital. The new facility, Westchester HealthAlliance, is located at HealthAlliance’s Mary’s Avenue campus in Kingston. The updated space includes a two-story addition that houses 78,000 square feet of clinical space, an ED, financial counseling, presurgical testing, admissions, a gift shop, coffee shop, and waiting areas. Hospital renovation and expansion To meet the growing needs of the surrounding Ulster County community, the updated facility p

The Arc of Monmouth Day Habilitation Center , a nonprofit organization that serves individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has completed construction of its new facility. It will provide healthcare services as well as supported housing, case management, support for caregivers and families, life skills training, social and emotional support, and independent living programs. The project, slated to open in February 2024, houses a variety of individualized areas including sensory and quiet rooms, a computer area, gym, and three kitchens. Ware Malcomb (Newark, N.J.) provided civil engineering, interior architecture, and design services for the 30,000-square-foot project.

A host of new specialty facilities broadened the healthcare design landscape in 2023, from transplant and eyecare clinics to treatment facilities for people with autism and related developmental disorders and more. In all these projects, design teams tailored the environments to the specific needs of their unique populations while embracing empathic, biophilic, and patient-centered design principles. Here,  Healthcare Design  highlights some of the specialty healthcare projects that stood out in 2023. Image credit: ©Albert Vecerka/Esto Cone Health MedCenter Greensboro at Drawbridge Parkway, Greensboro, North Carolina The 200,000-square-foot community-based facility integrates healthcare and well-being services, including community spaces to engage and teach healthy habits. Read more here .       Image credit: C&N Photography, Courtesy of Flad Architects Pleasant T. Rowland Transplant Clinic at University Hospital, Madison, Wisconsin The new 10,000-square-foot Pleasa