Now On Demand

Credits: 1 AIA LU/HSW; 1 AIBD P-CE; 0.1 IACET CEU
May qualify for learning hours through most Canadian architectural associations

This webinar is part of the Healthcare Academy

This course will take a look at two healthcare projects that have put a focus on the healing effects of nature. Many studies have shown the positive impact on healthcare outcomes that come from access to light, fresh air and natural environments. In addition, caregivers and healthcare professionals and staff can benefit from nature-inspired environments. This webinar will highlight how natural elements can positively influence patient and staff psychological and physiological responses to healthcare spaces.

Gina Chang, AIA, EDAC is a principal and healthcare architect at CO Architects. Gina will discuss the University of California Medical Center at Irvine. UC Irvine Health’s new Medical Center Campus sits balanced between its urban surroundings and the natural environment. Its address on Irvine’s major thoroughfare enables convenient access to the academic medical center’s cutting-edge clinical services. Immediately adjacent to the south end of campus is the San Joaquin Marsh natural preserve, which provides an opportunity to redefine the healing environment through unparalleled access to undisturbed nature. The campus includes a 144-bed, 350,000-square-foot specialty hospital and a 220,000-square-foot ambulatory care center, which specializes in orthopedic, oncology and neurological services, and will serve as Orange County’s comprehensive stroke center. The hospital and ambulatory care center are organized to maximize views to the marsh, whether from patient rooms, staff respite areas, terraces or the expansive events plaza. CO Architects’ design approach emphasizes opportunities for integrating nature and nature-inspired healing environments, including patient rooms placed based on views, daylit recovery areas and respect and protection for the local biosphere, all of which are touchstones in the firm’s healthcare practice.

Kent Muirhead, AIA, of CannonDesign will present the Sheppard Pratt Behavioral Health Campus project, a new hospital campus in Howard County, MD. The project is a new 85-bed, 156,000-sf hospital on the Sheppard Pratt campus that focuses on access to nature as part of the healing process. The new facility takes advantage of the site’s serene environment with inpatient units facing one of the several heavily forested swales. The majority of the patient bedrooms and all of the on-unit therapy and activity spaces face directly into the wooded landscape to capitalize on the healing effect of nature — a core philosophy of the Sheppard Pratt Health System. On-site campus amenities include wandering walking paths, natural sitting and reflecting areas accessible to patients, staff and visitors.

The presentations will be followed by a moderated discussion focused on how these innovative projects address several key issues.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain how natural elements can positively influence patient and staff psychological and physiological responses to healthcare spaces.
2. Describe the health benefits of making human connections to nature through purposeful design.
3. List two ways in which access to nature augments the healing process.
4. Identify two approaches used in the presented projects for integrating nature and nature-inspired healing environments.

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