One of the best ways to understand how to begin a new

Luke Jumper

Kevin Corzatt

Tom Dowgiallo

Professor Anthony

Architecture 372

17 February, 2003

Carle hospital pediatric expansion proposal

In an effort to build their program to a higher level, the medical school at the University of

Illinois Urbana/Champaign proposed a project for their pediatrics school. The school will

collaborate with Carle Medical Center to build an enhanced pediatrics unit. Both organizations

intend to establish a learning facility for the school, as well as an answer to the growing demands

of the community. To fulfill these ambitions, the hospital must create more space for the expanded

unit and the needs of the medical students. Our role in the project is to propose intelligent solutions

to the problems of the organizations and to facilitate in the realization of their goal.

Our firm will approach this project with the most economical, efficient, and admirable

point of view. We will meet the needs of our clients by understanding their intentions and giving

them our insight to finish with a successful project. Two standard approaches to this type of

problem are the building of a separate facility for pediatrics or the addition of more floors to the

existing structure. The direction we deem more feasible is the option to add on to the existing

conditions. This approach is not only economically better than building a freestanding structure,

but it is also less risk for our client. Transportation, space, staffing, construction, and other issues

are all factors that a client has to deal with when building a new facility and they are compounded

when a new structure goes up. We are always open to the idea of a new facility, but we cherish the

option of adding on to an already successful project.

This option also creates an opportunity for the future. The pediatrics unit would

traditionally be only a one-floor unit added on to the top of the hospital. However, a more

economical and more efficient approach would be to add an extra floor on top of the new pediatrics

floor. This will knock down the cost per square foot on the pediatrics floor. The additional floor

would be an empty space with a shell on the outside. Though the space will be unoccupied for a

while, the hospital can eventually use it when it looks for more space without having to deal with

the same construction costs or hassles. Areas in the hospital like the geriatrics and the O.B. unit,

expect expansion in the near future and therefore are likely residents of the additional space. This

option would not only be most efficient, but it’ll help unify the building as a whole. We also intend

to work with Carle when designing the overall layout of not only the floor itself, but also the

hospital as a whole. Due to higher traffic, the top floor may not be the best spot for the pediatrics

unit. The addition can be used to relocate other areas while renovating floors for the pediatrics

wing itself.

Depending on which specialty the university and hospital agree on within the pediatrics

unit, we would provide the hospital with the right environment to facilitate recovery of patients.

Several specialties that they will look into are a children’s oncology unit or a children’s endocrinology unit. Both areas are in big demand in central Illinois. The nearest oncology

specialist for children is in Springfield. An endocrinology unit would also be ideal because there

are only two endocrinology specialists in the Champaign/Urbana area, neither of which specializes

in children. For these areas, we will not only consider the most efficient use of space, but we would

also create an environment that is pleasing for a child. For example, in an oncology unit, machines

and equipment can be very intimidating for a young kid. We would make the space less

intimidating and more pleasing for a child.

In working with a medical school, a hospital must make a lot of accommodations. There

will be extra considerations such as extra laboratories, tutorial areas, demonstration areas, and

conference (interview) rooms. Other housekeeping information includes more room around each

bed in order for medical students to observe. More storage area and flexibility of space is also a

very important consideration. Since it is a learning facility, area must be designated to

accommodate future technology. Display of announcements and satellite uplink areas must also be

looked at in a new learning facility. However, you must not loose track of what your main priority

for the space is, the patient.

Experience has taught us that most hospital design can be dictated by simple rules.