As you probably know by now (if you have been following our posts) each week we visit a different healthcare facility located within the city of Chicago. This week we had the opportunity to visit the University of Chicago's Center for Care and Discovery. This is a fairly new hospital compared to some of our past visits with even more changes headed their way! They are preparing to open their new emergency department with a level 1 trauma center fairly soon. This was all a part of a large expansion plan that the University of Chicago had with the city and the surrounding area. This expansion plan included the relocation of the emergency department from the current location in the Bernard A. Mitchell hospital to a new location connected to their center for care and discovery. The Bernard A. Mitchell hospital will now be the location of a dedicated cancer treatment facility. After learning about all these changes happening at the University of Chicago and their new facilities I started to wonder how is the future of cancer centers changing and of course how does that change the architecture that surrounds them?
Exam rooms, lab rooms, specialty areas depending on your cancer, procedural centers, pharmacy's and many other program spaces are used by individuals with cancer. These used to all be programs that were located in different buildings located in different areas on a medical campus. With the growth in research of cancer, a new building typology has arisen... cue the Cancer Center! These centers allow for all of these types of programs and services to be located under one roof to ease the patient and their families. Another really large aspect in the design and use of these centers: homelike settings. After researching a few new cancer centers, including central Indiana's Community Cancer Center North as well as the new Mitchell Canter Center, the words warm, welcoming, and embracing are seen frequently when discussing the design of the space. The idea of making the interiors as well as the exterior of the building embracing for the patient is extremely important in this new building typology. Centers are now looking toward designing a center that makes the patient feel more relaxed and as if they were at home receiving their treatment instead of a sterile feeling medical center.
Even the mission statements and goals of these centers are similar. They all have the same initiative to not only screen and detect cancer, but to treat the cancer in the most efficient and quickest way possible to ensure the longtime health of their patients. As we have seen in past posts, healthcare is moving towards a more preventative approach. Since cancer cannot always be 100% preventable the main focus in these centers is the efficiency of treatment and the idea of getting their patients back to a normal lifestyle as quick as possible. In these mission's two words are always very clear: patients and families. This means more diagnostic and support programs will be included in these types of centers.
Another seemingly important programatic feature of these centers: nature space. Whether it visible through a glass atrium like the new Mitchell Cancer Center or an outdoor garden like the Indiana Community Cancer Center North, nature is seen as an important factor in the treatment process. Also other new types of programs that are cancer centric are being added to these facilities. The Indiana Community Cancer Center North includes boutiques in which the patients and their families can buy cancer-typical apparel like wigs, camisoles, head wraps, breast forms, and prosthetics. This is another way that the design of the building is catering the the patients inside. The main idea of these centers is that they really want the patient to be able to come in, receive their treatment, and be on their way without feeling like they are sick. These structures have to have the ability to morph into something that can be seen as part of someones daily or weekly routine instead of a place that a chronically sick person goes to. This makes the design of these centers extremely difficult, but also incredibly enticing.
To find out more on the Indiana Community Cancer Center North check out:
https://www.hfmmagazine.com/articles/2999-cancer-centers-flexible-design-helps-to-eliminate-departmental-silos
Video Credits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5giHuZ-6x-g
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