ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
Above: A ward interior games and conversation alcove. Left: An inpatient day ward lounge.
l Shared staff break rooms are provided in convenient locations with tea kitchens and comfortable furniture.
l Central shower and changing facilities with lockers have been provided.
l A dedicated multi-faith room for staff, carers, and service-users with ward leave.
l Shopping and food outlets will provide a canteen and café in the emerging Springfield Village.
l The charity, Hospital Rooms, has enhanced the Trinity and Shaftesbury buildings with a series of 20 major artworks. They enrich, surprise, inspire, and uplift, what otherwise would be blank, silent walls. They show users of the hospital that the community around them cares, and we are proud of the message that this sends to patients and staff.
Has it worked? There are tangible benefits in providing a safe, dignified, and therapeutic environment. Many patients and carers had expressed the shame associated with entering a mental health facility, so we wanted the Trinity and Shaftesbury buildings to feel different from the moment of approach: a hospital filled with daylight, fresh air, and co-produced artworks, all set in a welcoming community environment. (Indeed the integration of these facilities into the surrounding Springfield Village, including over 800 new homes; a new park; district heating system; café, and shops, was a central pillar of the project vision.)
Teva Hesse
Teva Hesse has led the design of major projects in Scandinavia, North America, and the UK. He has been based in London since 2002, focusing primarily on the cultural and healthcare sectors. He led the design and delivery of major UK projects such as the Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum, the Sammy Ofer Wing at the National Maritime Museum, and the Springfield University Hospital new mental health hospitals in South London, which will be fully completed in 2023.
After more than a decade of engaging with patients, staff, clinicians, and stakeholders, on mental health design, he says he is ‘committed to improving and destigmatising mental health facilities’.
He is currently the Design director at 4D Studio Architects, an architectural practice with a wide portfolio of design work. At present the practice is engaged in a variety of acute and mental health projects for NHS Trusts, including serving as design advisor.
THE NETWORK | NOVEMBER 2023 21
Mental health is quite literally at the heart of the development around a new public square, not hidden away and stigmatised, but part of the neighbourhood. The Shaftesbury building is currently being handed over to the Trust, so no patient data will be available for some time. After handover of the Trinity building in December 2022, a six-month post- occupancy evaluation process has begun. Key findings so far include: l A 35% reduction in violent incidents and patient-to-patient assaults.
l A 32% reduction in falls. l Serious incidents: A 36% reduction. l Ligature: 100% elimination of significant hazards.
l Improved staff satisfaction with their environment.
l Very positive patient feedback. Springfield Village has been visited by multiple DHSC and NHS Trust leaders to see how a community focused on mental wellness has set a benchmark for future developments.
Conclusion The Trinity and Shaftesbury buildings are the newest developments at the Springfield University Hospital, which is the hub of the South West London & St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust (SWLSTG). The project has provided an opportunity to modernise a mental health hospital constructed under the County Asylums Act of 1808, with infrastructure dating back to the 1840s. The grounds of the former asylum are currently being
transformed into a neighbourhood of new homes, refurbished historical buildings, community facilities, a care home, a school, and shops. The former agricultural holdings of the asylum are being reshaped into a new 32-acre public park, open and available to all. At the heart of this development,
new inpatient and outpatient facilities demonstrate how large healthcare facilities can benefit communities by accelerating transport, recreation, and urban realm improvements, as well as providing employment, enhanced security, and economic activity. This project signals that mental healthcare belongs in our communities. Reducing the stigma of mental illness removes barriers, and increases the likelihood of recovery. This is the first step to making service-users feel positive and comfortable in their surroundings. From the building threshold to the
bedroom, do patients and staff feel this is a good place, which signals dignity and respect? What should a new mental health facility look like? Our objective has been to create a facility that is surrounded by high-quality landscape; a building that includes gardens admitting as much daylight and fresh air as possible. A place that actively supports recovery by encouraging activities that are meaningful and empowering.
Our vision has been to deliver a place of
healing for patients, of pride for staff, and of reassurance for relatives, friends, and carers.
n
copyright Mark Hadden
copyright Mark Hadden
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