The occasional pleasant surprise is always nice, but an unanticipated tornado is rarely greeted with enthusiasm. Most of us prefer a relatively predictable future with adequate warning when the occasional storm heads our way.
Unfortunately, our current political drama has made our healthcare clients view the future of their business environment in much the same way most of us approach the latest weather report. We want to stay abreast of the latest news, but what we hear is greeted with skepticism.
Just as very few of us would bet a significant amount of our wealth on the reliability of weather predictions, our healthcare clients are struggling with how best to approach long-term planning when our national healthcare policy seems to change with the nightly news cycle.
Within this rancorous political environment and the uncertainty that it imposes on the healthcare industry, architects are asking themselves how they can best serve their healthcare clients with decisions that have significant cost and long-term implications.
Our advice to fellow architects and clients alike is to focus on what you know and avoid speculative investments.
We know, for example, that most of the nation’s healthcare infrastructure is aging, with many hospital campuses occupied by buildings that are ill-suited to meet the demands of modern healthcare.
We know that we have an aging Baby Boomer population that will require care and treatment for chronic problems that accompany old age. We also know that they are living longer than their parents did.
We’re aware, too, that the demographic and financial composition of the country is evolving. We know that many of the rural areas of the country are poorly served and lack adequate healthcare services. We also know that many urban areas have inadequate or poorly distributed trauma services.
These realities provide direction for where healthcare providers might make meaningful and defensible investments—at least until the political seas calm and the way forward is a bit more predictable.
For healthcare architects, these realities also offer potential opportunities for marketing strategies that can be tailored toward the types of projects that might surface during this stressful period. Projects could include the modernization of existing facilities, conversions from semi-private rooms to private rooms, or energy system upgrades that reduce operating costs.
More proactively, healthcare planners and designers might consider bundling services that are directed toward strategically assisting their clients with assessing opportunities within their existing healthcare campuses—opportunities that could improve operational efficiency, space utilization, and throughput.
Architects may be as ill-equipped to resolve the healthcare policy turmoil as everyone else, but healthcare designers are very well positioned to assist their clients strategically with insight and creativity—not only to navigate the stormy waters that are currently roiling the industry, but also to make meaningful interventions that provide long-term value to the communities they and their healthcare clients serve.
Related Stories
Healthcare Facilities | Jun 27, 2023
Convenience ranks highly when patients seek healthcare
Healthcare consumers are just as likely to factor in convenience as they do cost when deciding where to seek care and from whom, according to a new survey of 4,037 American adults about their attitudes and preferences as patients. The survey, conducted from April 19-28 by JLL, in many ways confirms the obvious: that older generations seek preventive care more often than younger generations; that insurance coverage is a primary driver for choosing a provider or hospital; and that the quality of service affects the patient experience.
Healthcare Facilities | Jun 27, 2023
A woman-led CM team manages the expansion and renovation of a woman-focused hospital in Nashville
This design-build project includes adding six floors for future growth.
Standards | Jun 26, 2023
New Wi-Fi standard boosts indoor navigation, tracking accuracy in buildings
The recently released Wi-Fi standard, IEEE 802.11az enables more refined and accurate indoor location capabilities. As technology manufacturers incorporate the new standard in various devices, it will enable buildings, including malls, arenas, and stadiums, to provide new wayfinding and tracking features.
Healthcare Facilities | Jun 14, 2023
Design considerations for behavioral health patients
The surrounding environment plays a huge role in the mental state of the occupants of a space, especially behavioral health patients whose perception of safety can be heightened. When patients do not feel comfortable in a space, the relationships between patients and therapists are negatively affected.
Engineers | Jun 14, 2023
The high cost of low maintenance
Walter P Moore’s Javier Balma, PhD, PE, SE, and Webb Wright, PE, identify the primary causes of engineering failures, define proactive versus reactive maintenance, recognize the reasons for deferred maintenance, and identify the financial and safety risks related to deferred maintenance.
Healthcare Facilities | Jun 5, 2023
Modernizing mental health care in emergency departments: Improving patient outcomes
In today’s mental health crisis, there is a widespread shortage of beds to handle certain populations. Patients may languish in the ED for hours or days before they can be linked to an appropriate inpatient program.
Healthcare Facilities | Jun 1, 2023
High-rise cancer center delivers new model for oncology care
Atlanta’s 17-story Winship Cancer Institute at Emory Midtown features two-story communities that organize cancer care into one-stop destinations. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and May Architecture, the facility includes comprehensive oncology facilities—including inpatient beds, surgical capacity, infusion treatment, outpatient clinics, diagnostic imaging, linear accelerators, and areas for wellness, rehabilitation, and clinical research.
Healthcare Facilities | May 19, 2023
A new behavioral health facility in California targets net zero energy
Shortly before Mental Health Awareness Month in May, development and construction firm Skanska announced the topping out of California’s first behavioral health facility—and the largest in the nation—to target net zero energy. Located in Redwood City, San Mateo County, Calif., the 77,610-sf Cordilleras Health System Replacement Project is slated for completion in late 2024.
3D Printing | May 12, 2023
World’s first 3D-printed medical center completed
3D construction printing reached new heights this week as the world’s first 3D-printed medical center was completed in Thailand.
Sustainability | May 11, 2023
Let's build toward a circular economy
Eric Corey Freed, Director of Sustainability, CannonDesign, discusses the values of well-designed, regenerative buildings.