The healthcare industry has drastically changed since the COVID-19 pandemic began five years ago. More areas of the country are demanding hospitals and other healthcare facilities to be built, but limited space is available to new buildings. While it is possible to renovate existing buildings to be healthcare spaces, the average U.S. building is over 50 years old, making it more challenging to accommodate the technological advancements that have occurred since it was first built.

Knowing this, many companies are moving forward with new buildings and are taking a modern-day approach when it comes to design. Healthcare Facilities Today recently spoke with Akshay Sangolli, principal, regional healthcare director for Page about how designers can create spaces that use modern-day trends while embracing long-term solutions.

HFT: What modern architectural trends are shaping healthcare facility designs?

Akshay Sangolli: Patient centered design continues to be an important consideration that is driving a focus on comfort, choice and privacy along with the incorporation of nature, natural light, art and soothing interiors that create a healing environment for patients.

Designing healthcare facilities that “care for the caregivers” is crucial to promote staff wellbeing. Improved staff spaces are key to reducing staff burn-out, increasing job satisfaction and ultimately helping reduce turnover and recruit the right staff. This has an impact not only on the financial performance of the organization but also on the quality of the care that is provided.

Hospital design will also need to address the challenges that will be posed by future pandemics and other outlier events. COVID lessons have brought home the importance of durable materials, infection control, large flexible spaces, spaces adaptable to isolation/negative air pressure, the ability to respond quickly to mass casualty events, and dozens of other changes that seem here to stay in the planning and design of hospital facilities.

Healthcare is undergoing an unprecedented technological transformation, particularly with the dramatic changes coming from the use of artificial intelligence, wearables, portable diagnostic devices, extended reality, robotics, and other digital technologies that are improving both patient care and staff efficiency. These technological advancements will eventually lead to a blurring of traditional distinctions between inpatient, outpatient, and virtual care.

Building codes and standards, however, are usually slower to catch-up and healthcare designers will have to think creatively to maximize flexibility and adaptability. We need to design our environments in a manner that they are ‘robust’ enough to meet current needs and yet be able to allow ‘updatability’ to cater to multiple future scenarios. Appropriately considering modular design, multi-use spaces, clinical flexibility, universal patient and procedural rooms, adaptable infrastructure planning, and prioritization of clinical revenue generating spaces will be key.

Healthcare construction costs have increased 34 percent from 2021 to 2023 and have remained at this plateau through 2024. Owner requests have added another 16 percent. This forces the project leadership to continuously reassess project priorities to align with financial constraints and find the ‘Goldilocks response’ that meets project needs within the available budget.

HFT: How can designers balance aesthetics with functionality in healthcare environments? 

Sangolli: The “form v/s function” debate isn’t new to design. In healthcare, more than any other typology, it is key to ensure that the design supports clinical operations. At the same time, it is important to create a healing environment for the patients, families and staff. Achieving the right balance where beauty and utility intertwine results in an enriched human experience.

A participatory design approach that encourages active collaboration between the design and clinical teams, along with the use of evidence-based design and other lean design tools will help balance aesthetics, dignity and comfort with safety, efficiency and flexibility. As profit margins remain low (about 5%) for hospital systems, it is important to be responsible stewards of a client’s resources while creating competitive healthcare spaces that attract consumers who have growing choices in the current healthcare climate.

Mackenna Moralez is the associate editor of the facilities market.