Healthcare Design - May 2018 - 20

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FTER TRYING to work from home and realizing it
wasn't for him, Vicrum Puri, a general contractor, and his wife, Rachel, a registered nurse, opened
BrooklynWorks at 159 in 2012. The 25,000-squarefoot co-working space in Brooklyn, N.Y., offers leasable small offices and meeting rooms as well as
shared reception, billing, and appointment-booking
services. Soon after, Puri says he began getting requests from health and wellness practitioners who wanted a similar setup. "There are huge barriers to entry into private practice, especially real
estate costs," Puri says. "Doctors and wellness practitioners are underserved in the co-working environment."
Seeing an opportunity, the Puris opened WellnessWorks at Trinity Center in New York's Flatiron District in October 2017. With Manhattan office
rents averaging $75 per square foot, WellnessWorks' medical co-working
space is a flexible and affordable option for solo and part-time practitioners, without an enormous real estate leasing investment. Designed by
Opera Studio Architecture (New York) and constructed by Bar Construction Group (Long Island City, N.Y.), the 15,000-square-foot suite includes
50 private offices ranging from 80 to 500 square feet. Thirty offices are
available for full-time rental, while 10 are dedicated to daily use and another 10 booked by the hour. Shared common areas include a reception
area, full kitchen, and two large rooms for group sessions or meetings,
which are also available to the public for rent.

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MAY 2018

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A B OV E , L E FT: Laser-cut

screens of MDF line the
hallways. The hexagon
shape, which occurs frequently in chemistry and
nature and is significant
in Eastern medicine, is
used throughout WellnessWorks to underscore
the inclusion of both
traditional and alternative
practices. A B OV E , RI GH T:
Medical rooms include
examination tables, wallmounted instruments,
sharps and medical waste
disposal, handwashing
sinks, and supply cabinets. BELOW: A reception
area, shared kitchen
(shown), and group session room comprise the
core of the space, while
treatment rooms are located along the perimeter
of the office.

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The modern office space features neutral
tones of bright white and brown, including
white oak hardwood floors and clear-coated
Baltic birch accents. A repeating hexagon pattern, which echoes that found in honeycomb or
organic molecules, is a prominent design detail
incorporated into laser-cut screens that front
the reception desk, the glass walls of the kitchen and session room, and the interior corridor
walls. "We wanted a feel that was funky and
modern, yet warm and welcoming," Puri says.
Current tenants, who are known as members, include primary care and specialty physicians, therapists, acupuncturists, and massage
therapists. Members, who pay a monthly fee,
book the office space through a proprietary
mobile platform, and services provided include reception and check-in, payment processing, call handling, appointment booking,
and insurance verification.
Patients check in at the reception desk, where
their insurance is processed and any co-payments are collected, alleviating practitioners
from having to handle this process themselves.
Waiting spaces and seating are provided at the
entrance and in recessed niches in the hallway.
All rooms have soundproofed solid walls and
doors for privacy, while the medical rooms feature exam tables and handwashing sinks. Supplies, as well as furnishings for the nonmedical
rooms, are the tenants' responsibility.
More than 50 percent of available memberships have been sold, Puri says, adding that in
the future, he plans to add patient onboarding,
electronic health and medical record management, legal, and credentialing services. "Our
goal is an end-to-end solution for our members, so they can focus on their clients," he
says.-Jennifer J. Salopek, freelance writer

EMILIO MOS COS O (E XAM ROOM)

MONITOR
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Healthcare Design - May 2018

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