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New Orleans Rebuilds Hospitals After Katrina
It’s hard to believe, but it’s been 10 years since Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and devastated the city. They have rebuilt, including the healthcare facilities. The University Medical Center New Orleans, which opened in August, replaces Charity Hospital while the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System replaces the Memorial Medical Center, which will open in 2016.
The main thing that changed in the planning and design of the new facilities is their “upside down” build. The ground floors house nothing critical so that if they do flood, everything can keep running. They have administrative office space, waiting areas, storage, equipment, and minimal clinical space.
Both facilities are equipped to run in a power outage for at least a week. This includes running full HVAC operations as the temperature rose to 110 degrees during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. This affects not only the patients, but the machines as well.
While we all hope that a storm like Katrina will never hit the city again, the healthcare facilities there have planned for such an event. To read the article and view the pictures featured in Healthcare Design Magazine, click here.
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- This 32-foot-tall glass and stainless steel sculpture and map of New Orleans was created by artist Ray King. Image: © NBBJ/Sean Airhart.
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- This two-story, light-filled atrium is at the new University Medical Center (UMC) New Orleans. Image: © NBBJ/Sean Airhart.
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- UMC New Orleans houses private patient rooms with space for family to remain with patients throughout their stay. Image: © NBBJ/Sean Airhart.
Source: Healthcare Design Magazine
