ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
A safe haven for patients with eating disorders
Sited in a protected wooded glade, Kimmeridge Court at St Ann’s Hospital in Poole is a new eating disorders unit designed by Medical Architecture, which the practice says ‘has been carefully crafted to preserve the quality of its natural setting, and to create a uniquely private and therapeutic environment for the treatment of its patients’. Bob Wills, a director at the practice with over 31 years’ experience as an architect, reports.
Designed by Medical Architecture and built by Kier for Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust, the £8 m inpatient unit at St Ann’s Hospital in Poole provides specialist accommodation to meet a growing demand for this service. Eating disorders are responsible for more loss of life than any other mental health condition, and are becoming increasingly common both in the UK and worldwide. In England, hospital admissions for eating disorders reached over 24,000 in 2020-2021, a five-year increase of 84%. In Dorset, the All Age Eating Disorders Service has seen a year- on-year increase, and a significant surge during the COVID-19 pandemic – of 53% from 2020/2021 to 2021/2022.
Shortfall in available beds While nationally there is a shortfall in available beds for eating disorders, the completion of Kimmeridge Court will increase the Trust’s capacity for specialist care from 6 to 10 beds, to meet demand in the local area, ensuring that patients
can receive treatment closer to home and their support network; one key factor that aids their recovery. Dr Carla Figueiredo, Consultant Psychiatrist at Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust, explains: “There are huge advantages in being treated closer to home. Patients aren’t taken away from their support systems, their family, and their community teams, so that means that admissions will be more supported. Also, we often have to wait for out-of-area beds with the risk of further deterioration in a person’s health, so additional local capacity will mean shorter waiting times and quicker access to services. Something else that is very important is the transition from inpatient care to home and care in the community. The opportunity for trials of home leave is an important part of the discharge process, and would be much harder to facilitate if the person was being treated far away from home. So, discharges can be more effectively managed if people are receiving treatment close to where they live.
Meeting the need for specialist facilities “Staff observation of patients is a critical factor in successful treatment for eating disorders, but it can be a challenge to achieve this while still protecting the privacy and dignity of patients. Offering expanded and improved facilities – including inpatient bedrooms, clinical and therapy spaces, and sensitively designed living spaces – the new building addresses these challenges, providing a supportive environment for patient recovery.”
Creating a special environment on a sensitive site The building is located within the attractive wooded grounds of the Grade II* Listed St Ann’s Hospital on the Dorset coast, near to Sandbanks. The size and positioning of the building have been carefully crafted to have a low impact on the mature coastal trees that occupy the site, and to respect the character of the surrounding area. The larger two-storey volume of the
Above: The approach to Kimmeridge Court. A root-protecting foundation design enables the retention of mature trees ‘remarkably close to the building’. Right: The building has been designed to take full advantage of the quality of its natural setting.
THE NETWORK | AUGUST 2023 23
All photos: Richard Chivers
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
