The patients' well-being is all healthcare institutions' number one priority, so when Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP secured the commission to design the new Christ Hospital's Joint and Spine Center located in Cincinnati, Ohio, they envisioned a complex that creates a warm and comforting atmosphere, while still adhering to strict clinical and medical requirements.
SOM kick-started the design process by interviewing staff and patients to discover their various needs, in order to prioritise comfortable, integrated care. Their research concluded that the best way to structure the environment is to give careful consideration to the way patients, families and medical professionals interact on site.
'The entire design and construction team worked very closely with the hospital’s leadership, staff and users to create a place that facilitates and inspires well-being,' says SOM design partner Brian Lee.
The new building boasts the most advanced form of integrated care, tailored to each individual patient and their needs. 'The opening of the Joint and Spine Center allows us to transform the way care is delivered,' says Mike Keating, president and CEO of The Christ Hospital Health Network.
The unit’s private rooms feature floor-to-ceiling frosted and clear glass, which can be easily managed by the patient via designated electronic remote controls. The layout of the hi-tech ward rooms follow a clear and defined geometry. Facilities, such as support and utility spaces, are decentralised. This creates a rare sense of openness in the layout and enhances connectivity between the different wards of the hospital.
Recreational facilities for staff and patients include a new roof garden that holds stunning views of the surrounding city and a landscaped courtyard positioned between the complex's old and new structures.
Materials were chosen for their warmth and sustainable qualities, aiming for a tranquil and therapeutic environment. The building's structural frame is made of steel, while the architects used ‘prefabricated bathroom modules and MEP infrastructure to achieve a high-quality, cost-effective construction.’
Through their design, the architects wanted to create a space that combines warmth and comfort with top notch healthcare and medical excellence
In order to achieve the best results possible, SOM interviewed patients and staff to ensure their design responds to everybody's needs
Instead of creating a central core with all the service areas, the architects spread facilities and utility rooms out; this resulted in an internal layout with a real sense of openness
All the patients' rooms feature generous windows, which can be controlled easily remotely
Recreational facilities for staff and patients include a new roof garden that holds stunning views of the surrounding city
INFORMATION
For more information on SOM visit the website
Photography: Tom Rossiter
-
Year in review: the shape of mobility to come in our list of the top 10 concept cars of 2025Concept cars remain hugely popular ways to stoke interest in innovation and future forms. Here are our ten best conceptual visions from 2025
-
These Guadalajara architects mix modernism with traditional local materials and craftGuadalajara architects Laura Barba and Luis Aurelio of Barbapiña Arquitectos design drawing on the past to imagine the future
-
Robert Therrien's largest-ever museum show in Los Angeles is enduringly appealing'This is a Story' at The Broad unites 120 of Robert Therrien's sculptures, paintings and works on paper
-
Step inside this resilient, river-facing cabin for a life with ‘less stuff’A tough little cabin designed by architects Wittman Estes, with a big view of the Pacific Northwest's Wenatchee River, is the perfect cosy retreat
-
Remembering Robert A.M. Stern, an architect who discovered possibility in the pastIt's easy to dismiss the late architect as a traditionalist. But Stern was, in fact, a design rebel whose buildings were as distinctly grand and buttoned-up as his chalk-striped suits
-
Own an early John Lautner, perched in LA’s Echo Park hillsThe restored and updated Jules Salkin Residence by John Lautner is a unique piece of Californian design heritage, an early private house by the Frank Lloyd Wright acolyte that points to his future iconic status
-
The Stahl House – an icon of mid-century modernism – is for sale in Los AngelesAfter 65 years in the hands of the same family, the home, also known as Case Study House #22, has been listed for $25 million
-
Houston's Ismaili Centre is the most dazzling new building in America. Here's a look insideLondon-based architect Farshid Moussavi designed a new building open to all – and in the process, has created a gleaming new monument
-
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fountainhead will be opened to the public for the first timeThe home, a defining example of the architect’s vision for American design, has been acquired by the Mississippi Museum of Art, which will open it to the public, giving visitors the chance to experience Frank Lloyd Wright’s genius firsthand
-
Clad in terracotta, these new Williamsburg homes blend loft living and an organic feelThe Williamsburg homes inside 103 Grand Street, designed by Brooklyn-based architects Of Possible, bring together elegant interiors and dramatic outdoor space in a slick, stacked volume
-
This ethereal Miami residence sprouted out of a wild, jungle-like gardenA Miami couple tapped local firm Brillhart Architecture to design them a house that merged Florida vernacular, Paul Rudolph and 'too many plants to count’
