Healthcare Design - May 2021 - 64

fac e

Time

ADELEH NEJATI

Associate principal/vice president, healthcare planner
and researcher, HMC Architects (San Francisco)
From her undergraduate architecture studies to graduate school at Texas
A&M University's Center for Health Systems and Design, Adeleh Nejati was
set on a career in the healthcare design sector. She joined HMC in 2019, where
she's been leading the firm's COVID-19 and cancer research studies. She keeps
busy outside the office hiking, cooking, and hitting the slopes. -Anne DiNardo

C O F F EE O R T EA ?
Coffee. I love the
smell of it!

G O -T O KA R A O KE
SO NG
John Legend's " All of Me. "

C O C KTA IL O F
C H O IC E

W H AT ' S A N E W H O B B Y
YOU'VE PICKED UP DURING
T H E C O R O N AV I R U S P A N D E M I C ?

W H AT WA S Y O U R F I R S T
H E A LT H C A R E P R O J E C T ?
My first major healthcare project in the U.S. was
USC Norris Cancer Center in Los Angeles.

Skiing. I tried skiing once many years ago and didn't like
it at all, but my boyfriend encouraged me to try it again.
This season, I managed to ski a blackish-blue run for the
first time!

W H AT D E S I G N L E S S O N F R O M
T H AT P R O J E C T D O Y O U S T I L L
C A R R Y W I T H Y O U T O D AY ?

OUTSIDE THE OFFICE, WE'LL
L I K E LY F I N D Y O U ...

The quality of spaces for clinical staff is as important
as those for patients and families. When staff are
comfortable and have easy access to the things they
need, the patients and families will benefit.

Moscow mule.

H O W D ID YO U
M A KE YO UR F IR ST
D O LLA R ?
Tutoring students in
math when I was 16.
I majored in math at
high school in Iran and
was really good at it.

Hiking in Mount Tamalpais in Mill Valley, Calif. I enjoy
the views of the ocean, the bay, bridges, and the city.
YO UR H ID D EN
TA LENT

F AV O R I T E ...

O N H E A LT H C A R E D E S I G N
TRENDS
Indoor-outdoor
connection. Amid
this current pandemic, it's
an even more important
trend to focus on and
explore in different
settings.
Not having operable windows or

PL ACE TO TRAVEL The Therme Vals in Vals,
Switzerland, designed by Peter Zumthor.

outdoor balconies in patient care areas. Safety
and security are major
hurdles to this trend;
however, these features
not only can provide
access to daylight and
views but also physical
access to the outdoors
and fresh air.

M OVI E CH ARACTER Dory from " Finding Dory. " I
love her positive spirit and persistence despite her shortterm memory loss issue.
B OOK " Ruth Bader Ginsburg Pocket Quote Book:
Notorious and Wise Sayings From RBG. "

Sewing, mainly doing
alterations.

M O R NING
P ER SO N O R
NIG H T O W L?

CULTURAL TRADI TI ON Nowruz Haft-seen. It's an
arrangement of seven symbolic items whose names start
with the letters in the Persian alphabet. It's traditionally
displayed at the Persian New Year, which is celebrated
on the first day of spring.

I usually wake up at
6 a.m., get my coffee,
and practice piano for
an hour.

T H R E E H E A LT H C A R E P R O J E C T S Y O U ' V E W O R K E D
ON IN THE LAST YEAR AND YOUR ROLE

YO U H AV E
A N IR R AT IO NA L
F EA R O F ...

1
2
3

" Design for Empathy: An investigative study on how healthcare
environments impact a cancer patient's journey, " lead researcher.

Dead bodies. I cannot
tour the morgue
department when touring
a hospital building.

Kona Community Hospital, 10-year master plan, Kona, Hawaii,
healthcare planning and design.

F IR ST A LBUM YO U
EV ER BO UG H T
Céline Dion's " Live
à Paris. "

64

MAY 2021

64_HCD_0521_Facetime ad, jks, ad tw kdz ad.indd 64

HMC ARCHITECTS

Kaiser Permanente, Sunset Ambulatory Surgery Center, Los Angeles
Medical Center, Los Angeles, healthcare planning and design.

HCDMAGAZINE.COM

4/14/21 2:17 PM
http://www.HCDMAGAZINE.COM
Healthcare Design - May 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Healthcare Design - May 2021
