Cook County Health + Hospital System
The new Cook County Health and Hospital System was designed by Gensler and partnered with Forum Studio, Clayco and many other firms. The John H Stroger hospital is one of the hospitals along the Illinois Medical District, and one of the newest additions to the Cook County Health System. The new hospital is designed to split the Stroger campus into two parts to create a better segregation of traffic, and set an entry. The planning of the traffic flows took into consideration the separation of the residential and commercial spaces in the surrounding area.
This building was designed to be flexible, as it is a big box with varying floor to floor heights, and an open floor plan that allows the hospital to adjust and change as needed.
The First 9 floors are clinic spaces
Top floors are administration spaces
This building is intended to be an outpatient + screening facility
Our class was fortunate enough to go on a site visit of the construction of this building, and it was the largest building I’ve ever visited under construction.
During our tour Erik Andersen, Design Principal at Forum Studio; he explained a few different spaces throughout the building. One that stood out to me was the Infusion Therapy space.
What is infusion therapy?
Infusion refers to the administration of medications directly into a vein through a needle or catheter. Infusion therapy is the practice using infusion to treat patients whose condition is so severe that periodic oral or injectable treatments aren’t effective.
While we tend to think of infusion therapy as a delivery mechanism for chemotherapy medications, the most common use of infusion therapy is to treat dehydration through an intravenous drip from a bag of fluid containing water, dissolved salt and electrolytes. Other uses of infusion therapy include delivery of antibiotics, vitamins, antiviral medications and anti fungal medications for non-chronic conditions.
Erik Andersen explained to us that the way hospitals are looking at Infusion Therapy Spaces are changing, and the patients are wanting a more personal experience. In this hospital the space is designed into rows with three bays. There will be curtains available for privacy, but this is intended to allow the patients to have more interactions with other clients. There is access to natural light and views to the outside, which creates more flexibility in how the space can be used.
If you are interested in learning more about Infusion Therapy Spaces and how they are being designed, below are a few links to articles that provide broader information:
https://www.hfmmagazine.com/articles/1522-interior-designs-for-cancer-care
Comments