Loyola’s vision in building the new Hospital Tower was to create a landmark for their world-class academic medical center. In addition, they wanted to consolidate their Heart and Vascular program. The new Loyola University Hospital Tower houses the Center for Heart and Vascular Medicine and a new entry for the existing hospital. This major expansion included:
Especially of note is the area’s first magnetic-guided navigation system for the treatment of heart conditions as well as the powerful 3 Tesla MRI.
Working in a joint venture with HOK, we developed an interventional model for this project. In a rapidly changing healthcare environment, the ability to adapt spaces and accommodate the flow of patients is a necessity. To create this flexibility, all invasive procedures - Surgery, Cath and EP suites - were integrated into one unit creating easily adaptable spaces when needed. The interventional area includes four Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, four Electrophysiology Labs, one Stereotactic MR Room and 12 operating rooms. The suites are designed with the same central sterile access and sterile flow to allow for the most invasive cases. This model also gave the client the ability to consolidate support spaces traditionally stationed throughout the facility into one location, resulting in staff and space savings.
The new space focuses on the patient experience with the goal of decreasing patient stress levels and enhancing the recovery process. Patients are greeted in the new two-story main lobby with nature inspired finishes and a unique 18-foot water feature that provides a soothing space. The lobby translates into a corridor connecting the new facility with the existing campus and is oriented along the perimeter of the building with large windows. This system easily allows visitors to orient themselves to the outside while navigating the building, maintaining low stress levels.
Patient areas are designed around Loyola’s new patient-and-family-centered model of care. The new private Inpatient units provide comfortable accommodation for patients and their families in a relaxing environment. Studies have shown that the use of natural colors have an impact on the healing process. These findings have been incorporated throughout the building, especially in the new private patient rooms. Large windows offer natural light that creates a nurturing and relaxing space and tone-on-tone finishes create a peaceful environment for patients to begin their healing process.
Nursing support is designed around a decentralized model of care. Smaller Collaborative work areas are augmented with satellite stations located directly outside patient rooms. This will increase the amount of time nurses spend at patient bedsides and allow them to give more personalized patient-centered care.
When Loyola University Health System decided to build a landmark facility, they knew the building would be centrally located on campus and needed to create a unique and distinct identity. To do this, the design team worked to understand the client’s unique qualities based on their mission, location, surroundings, services provided and beliefs. Using symbols of the client’s distinct qualities, the team created a unique identifier. St. Ignatius of Loyola’s sword was combined with the shield that represents Loyola’s identity in their logo. Used together the symbols represent protection and fighting illness. This custom pattern appears in the frieze and column bases on the façade and is referenced again throughout the interiors. This unique identifier reinforces icons that are significant to the client and uses their history to remind patients, visitors and staff of their mission of treating the human spirit.
