Creating mindful space
Safety and comfort are two main goals of any behavioral health care design project. Hunt says, “We’ve learned over time that those two don’t have to be an either/or situation. We can provide both within the same environment, but it takes a different way of looking at it than what’s been typically done in medical institutions.”
Hunt also consulted on the design of the new Cherry Hospital, a state-run psychiatric facility in Goldsboro, N.C. The project’s architect of record, the Freelon Group, Research Triangle Park, N.C., is now part of architecture and design firm Perkins+Will. North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services spokesperson Olivia James says patient and staff safety was considered in all design decisions at Cherry Hospital — including materials, furnishings, circulation routes and use of space. For example, anti-ligature door hinges, handles and locking mechanisms are installed in all patient areas to prevent self-harm. “Many of these anti-ligature devices were not on the market until just a couple of years ago, and they were produced in response to the need by psychiatric hospitals,” James says.
These products confer a high level of safety without an institutional appearance, says Hunt. “It’s the direction all health care needs to go,” he adds.
Cherry Hospital’s main off-unit activity zone is organized as a therapy mall with classrooms, courtyards, a library, medical clinic and laboratory, gymnasium, group therapy and dining space. Located on the second level, the therapy mall is just one floor away, by elevator or stairs, from the rest of the building. James says that this is an improvement over the hospital’s previous campus, where staff members routinely had to transport patients between buildings. “This one up/one down concept allows a much safer transition of patients to and from the mall activities,” she says.
Common design elements throughout the facility include high ceilings, vandal-resistant light fixtures, durable finishes and furnishings, and natural light. “Natural light is a key design element,” James says. “All areas have utilized natural light to open spaces and make them less confining.”
Transparency and light also are key to the design of the Comprehensive Behavioral Health Center at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, New York City, designed by the Behavioral Healthcare Architecture Group. At this facility, interior glazing to the corridor gives rooms a feeling of openness, making them more comfortable spaces to inhabit, says William N. Bernstein, AIA, LEED AP, co-founder, Behavioral Healthcare Architecture Group. Hunt notes that largely in response to recent hurricanes, the glass industry has developed products that are high-strength and perfectly clear, well-suited to use in behavioral health care. “There’s a lot of effort to create a safe environment and create a really appealing environment at the same time,” Bernstein says.
Solid, secured, natural-wood furnishings add to the appeal of patient rooms at Kingsbrook. Built-in benches provide a spot for patients to sit and read, or for counselors to sit, rather than on the bed, when seeing patients in their rooms.