Healthcare Design - November 2019 - 48

NOVEMBER 2019

TOP A N D A B OV E : Each

elevator arrival area
has an identifying
color scheme that's
also carried into the
signage, graphics,
and overhead ceiling
elements.

GUIDE FOR THE FUTURE

Browning says one of the most compelling aspects of the project was recognizing that the
previous concourse was adding stress to users'
experiences. "We definitely improved the intuitiveness and added a calming sense," he says.
Furthermore, he says the project's architectural
language will be used when the main concourse
is extended to connect to the new critical care
building. In fact, designers have already started
developing the addition's wayfinding cues, starting with its animal character: a giraffe. 
Anne DiNardo is executive editor of Healthcare
Design. She can be reached at A N N E . D I N A R D O @
EMERALDEXPO.COM.

HCDMAGAZINE.COM

RYAN KURTZ

the current project but future ones, as well. For example, while the existing wayfinding program included a barrage of signage on the ceilings and
floors, the project team decided to simplify the approach. The design relies
on existing colors assigned to each building, including orange, blue, purple,
and red, to denote key areas via the use of textured column wraps and colored ceiling elements. The signage was also reduced, thanks to the addition
of new digital directories.
The spaces along the concourse between the clinics and buildings
were then renovated using a neutral palette to allow the arrival areas and
tower entrances to further pop along the concourse. "You can see the
colors down the concourse to help you get to the right area," says Brooke
Behnfeldt, principal and senior interior designer at GBBN. In addition,
animal characters were assigned to each building, such as an armadillo
for Location A and a dinosaur for Location D. These characters appear in
graphics and as kid-friendly sculptures in the arrival areas near the parking garage elevators, to help young patients and families identify the entrance they used and find their way back. The colors and graphics are repeated in the parking garage to further assist navigation from the garage
to a specific building entrance.
Recognizing that families often arrive with lots of gear, including strollers, coats, and umbrellas, the project team further improved the concourse
experience by designating landing zones off the elevators to give patients
and families space to orient themselves and adjust their belongings before
moving deeper into the building. "The landing pads give them a place to
decompress for a moment," Behnfeldt says.
One of the biggest transformations on the project was the concourse
area near Location A, a highly traveled entrance where the existing
elevator opened to face a water fountain and restrooms and the welcome desk was located behind a wall. To resolve the set-up, the medical center decided to reroute the main parking garage's entrance to add
2,400 square feet to the area. Then a wall was removed and the elevator door was reoriented to create a more welcoming setting. "Now when
the doors open, you can see the welcome center and you see very clear
graphics and artwork that connect the elevator to the visitor welcome
desk," Browning says. "A lot of the exercise was really just clarifying intuitive architecture so you didn't have to stop and ask a question or rely
on signage for help."

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Healthcare Design - November 2019

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