Andy Morse (standing) watches while the panel discusses coming trends in healthcare facilities. (l-r) Stanley Hunter, Bill Karanian, Kurt Baur, Anthony Caputo, Claudio Capone
Hamden, CT – Emerging trends and the direction of the healthcare industry and how it affects planning, design, and construction was the topic for Connecticut Building Congress’ (CBC) February program.
Andy Morse, Arcadis USA, Inc. and a member of CBC’s Program Committee, moderated a discussion among healthcare owners and representatives from A/E/C firms to discuss the changing facility needs for an industry in transition.
Kurt Baur, AIA, ACHA, director of healthcare architecture at Fletcher Thompson, when asked if it was worth it to build new facilities, responded, “It is absolutely worth it. So many facilities have gotten older, inefficient, and ineffective.” He added that new and upgraded facilities “need to make the process of patient care more efficient.”
“Hospitals are seeing a shift in reimbursement rates from quantity to quality, as outcome-based incentives become the standard,” added Stanley Hunter, master plan project director, Stamford Hospital. “In addition, the number of large projects is going down, but there is great need in the communities, where acute care is so important.”
“There are tremendous incentives around energy-efficiency,” added Anthony Caputo, CHFM, director, facilities management of Norwalk Hospital. Advances in technology are also increasing demand for “IT infrastructure that allows for ‘telemedicine.’”
Claudio Capone, FACHE, director of business development at St. Mary’s Healthcare System, talked about yet another way new facilities are improving efficiency. “What’s inside the facilities is very different — much more acute care than before.”
The interior design must improve patient experience — there is competition, and seekers of care have a number of options from which to choose.
For a design perspective, Bill Karanian, COO at The SLAM Collaborative, shared that balancing the risks with the need to innovate is a challenge. “We need more predictable outcomes, and that starts with architects. We have to look at value per square foot as opposed to cost per square foot.”
