HOSPITAL REDEVELOPMENT
and security and seating, and is the initial touch point for all patients and visitors. The welcome desk, staffed by volunteers, has been located so that it has a prominent role, while security is tactfully obscured via a tiled feature wall and mirrored glass. Universal stations have been designed to facilitate both triage and registration functions so that staff, rather than patients and families, can move from station to station to accommodate processing. Although well-appointed, the waiting area itself is smaller than might be expected, as it is anticipated that patients will move quickly into smaller individual waiting areas within each pod. It is believed these changes will improve patient outcomes and aid in the throughput of the department, although this will need to be proven by studies of the operational department. Current anecdotal feedback from staff has been positive. As part of the design process, a narrative structure was
developed by RPK to engage with stakeholders in the development of qualitative attributes. Initial discussions led to the synthesis of a distinct mission for the Emergency Department to be a space that is efficient, welcoming, warm, and safe. This vision was then further augmented, with the building’s design elements reflecting several key aspects of the site’s and Covenant Health’s history, both overtly, and in subtle ways. The building was designed to blend into the remainder of the
existing campus, rather than stand out. Its vertically-orientated white metal cladding, organised in horizontal bands, together with the white brickwork on the front facade, reflect the materials and geometries of the original hospital building, with the large ‘emergency’ sign and arrival area glass delineating the entrance.
Courtyards ‘carved’ into the footprint An additional layer of meaning has been created through the courtyards that are carved into the building’s footprint, each associated with an internal patient waiting area or other specific programmatic element (mental health courtyard and family room). The exterior walls that form the courtyards are clad in copper, an acknowledgment of the chapel that was demolished to accommodate the department. These copper-clad walls have been left to patina, transitioning from bright orange to brown, and finally to green, a reminder of what once stood on the site. As a naturally oxidising material, these walls lend further interest to the courtyards that serve to provide visual respite and connection to the outdoors in the patient waiting areas. In addition to reflecting the immediate history of the site via the copper cladding, the design team incorporated symbolism relating to Covenant Health’s history. Realising that lanterns represent hope for the organisation, they were reinterpreted as a design motif for the department’s wayfinding indicators. Each pod entrance is identified with a backlit wall, subtle colour, and rectilinear lantern motif. Although the symbolism may not be obvious for all visitors, it weaves a story and sense of pride for staff, reinforcing their mission of caring for the whole person – body, mind, and soul. Opened in November 2023, the Misericordia Community Hospital
Emergency Department renovation is exemplary of how novelty in procurement methodology, functional planning approach, thoughtful design, and quality construction, can create a project that truly elevates a patient’s experience. Alberta Infrastructure’s approach to the initial procurement process created a groundwork of trust from the very beginning. The subsequent development of a philosophy of flow became a focal point for a physical manifestation of a clinical plan that will likely see improved patient outcomes, while the weaving of organisational and site-specific details into the interior and exterior design elements has created a rich tapestry of meaning that serves to elevate the building’s purpose. Indeed, it seems that to go with the flow is a good thing.
Acknowledgment n This article, titled ‘Form flows from function’, first appeared in
the Summer 2024 issue of Canadian Healthcare Facilities, the official magazine of the Canadian Healthcare Engineering Society (CHES). HEJ thanks the author, CHES, and the magazine’s publisher, MediaEdge, for allowing its reproduction, in slightly edited form, here.
February 2025 Health Estate Journal 39
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