Positive Distractions…

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center completed an 80,000-square-foot multispecialty clinic in Green Township, Ohio, in 2013. The building houses nine clinics and 17 services and is designed to bring area children a comfortable and positive healthcare environment that’s close to home.

Designed by Moody Nolan (Columbus, Ohio), the facility features a standardized floor plan that provides identical clinical modules with clear separation of public and clinical circulation. This allows programs to flex by expanding or contracting over time without requiring major renovation to the facility.

Positive distractions, such as colors, patterns, artwork, and interior features, are designed to appeal to children and family members alike.

Flexibility is a key attribute of the new facility and the modular design allows for adaptations as healthcare delivery, procedures, and needs change over time. For example, the clinic pods can be used for the different specialties of care that occur on different days of the week or even times of day. Systems furniture in some of the work areas can also be dismantled and reassembled into different configurations depending on the center’s needs.

One challenge was the size of the building relative to the steep-sloping site. To overcome this, Moody Nolan expanded the site and built a platform for parking and the building itself.

Now that the building is occupied, the hospital has started an art program with children in the community to create pieces that will be displayed in the facility.

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital says it anticipates more than 50,000 visits within the first year of operation and at least 80,000 visits per year by 2018.

This post was originally published in Healthcare Design Magazine and may be seen here.