Whittington Hospital outlined plans for an innovative new outpatients’ ward offering same-day treatment to prevent longer-term admissions. We were commissioned to work on the project alongside Studio Tilt, with a shared brief to create a welcoming and informal environment, to support these services. The design splits the centre into a series of dynamic zones, each adapted for different users and uses: a children’s space at one end, adults at the other, and an informal, comfortable café area in the middle.
Within this, a number of particular interventions stand out: the children’s area features child-sized furniture and a play space that allows clinicians to observe children; whilst the nurses’ station provides 360 degree views of the waiting area to ensure waiting patients are stable and safe. At the same time, smaller glazed areas to give clinicians space to converse, protecting patient confidentiality. Another significant move was to commission locally based artist Alex Green to design a series of murals depicting the wild spaces and swimming ponds of nearby Hampstead Heath to create a calming backdrop for the space.
For more details, read our Project Story.
Development and delivery of a new kind of hospital department: an informal, welcoming series of spaces which illustrate how the institutional feel of hospital facilities can become a thing of the past.