Hackensack (N.J.) University Medical Center recently opened its 530,000-sf Helena Theurer Pavilion, a nine-story surgical and intensive care tower designed by RSC Architects and Page. The county’s first hospital, Hackensack University Medical Center, a 781-bed nonprofit teaching and research hospital, was founded in 1888.
The Pavilion features New Jersey’s first intraoperative MRI system, used during neurosurgical and neuro-interventional procedures to help neurosurgeons accurately remove tumors and treat conditions such as Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy. Of the facility’s 24 operating rooms, six have been designed to accommodate robotic-assisted surgery systems, allowing surgeons to perform minimally invasive procedures that may reduce recovery time and improve outcomes.
The Pavilion also includes the following:
- 72 post-anesthesia care unit beds and 50 intensive care unit (ICU) beds
- 175 medical/surgical beds, including a Musculoskeletal Institute and intermediate care rooms
- 12 negative-pressure rooms to reduce the risk of aerosolized disease transmission within the hospital
- Six da Vinci robotic surgical systems, including four orthopedic robots for joint replacement procedures
- All-private patient rooms
In addition, the entire building can be converted to a negative-pressure facility in the event of a future pandemic or public health emergency.
The Helena Theurer Pavilion incorporates features that enhance patient comfort, patient safety, and employee efficiency. These include dedicated CT imaging on the ICU floor, a monitor tablet outside each patient room for employees, in-room team workstations, and patient lift systems.
“This is one of the largest hospital construction projects in the country, and we could not be more proud to advance healthcare for the communities we are privileged to serve,” Robert C. Garrett, CEO of Hackensack Meridian Health, said in a statement.
On the Building Team:
Owner: Hackensack Meridian Health
Design and medical planning architect: Page
Architect of record (interior build-out of the Pavilion): Page
Architect of record (overall): RSC Architects
MEP: Syska Hennessy Group
Structural engineer: Reuther + Bowen
Construction manager: Blanchard Turner
Related Stories
| Oct 15, 2014
Harvard launches ‘design-centric’ center for green buildings and cities
The impetus behind Harvard's Center for Green Buildings and Cities is what the design school’s dean, Mohsen Mostafavi, describes as a “rapidly urbanizing global economy,” in which cities are building new structures “on a massive scale.”
| Oct 13, 2014
Debunking the 5 myths of health data and sustainable design
The path to more extensive use of health data in green building is blocked by certain myths that have to be debunked before such data can be successfully incorporated into the project delivery process.
| Oct 12, 2014
AIA 2030 commitment: Five years on, are we any closer to net-zero?
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the American Institute of Architects’ effort to have architecture firms voluntarily pledge net-zero energy design for all their buildings by 2030.
| Oct 8, 2014
Massive ‘healthcare village’ in Nevada touted as world’s largest healthcare project
The $1.2 billion Union Village project is expected to create 12,000 permanent jobs when completed by 2024.
| Oct 3, 2014
Designing for women's health: Helping patients survive and thrive
In their quest for total wellness, women today are more savvy healthcare consumers than ever before. They expect personalized, top-notch clinical care with seamless coordination at a reasonable cost, and in a convenient location. Is that too much to ask?
| Sep 29, 2014
10 common deficiencies in aging healthcare facilities
VOA's Douglas King pinpoints the top issues that arise during healthcare facilities assessments, including missing fire/smoke dampers, out-of-place fire alarms, and poorly constructed doorways.
| Sep 25, 2014
Look to history warily when gauging where the construction industry may be headed
Precedents and patterns may not tell you all that much about future spending or demand.
| Sep 24, 2014
Architecture billings see continued strength, led by institutional sector
On the heels of recording its strongest pace of growth since 2007, there continues to be an increasing level of demand for design services signaled in the latest Architecture Billings Index.
| Sep 23, 2014
Cedars-Sinai looks to streamline trauma care with first-of-its-kind OR360 simulation space
The breakthrough simulation center features moveable walls and a modular ceiling grid that allow doctors and military personnel to easily reconfigure the shape and size of the space.
| Sep 22, 2014
4 keys to effective post-occupancy evaluations
Perkins+Will's Janice Barnes covers the four steps that designers should take to create POEs that provide design direction and measure design effectiveness.
