Insights & Solutions

The design vision statement expressed that the new Parkland Hospital be a safe, welcoming, patient-centered healing environment that serves as a sustainable community resource for Dallas County. It would promote excellence in clinical care, teaching, and research in a technologically advanced, easily accessible environment.

Choctaw Nation Health Services (CNHS) stated its purpose was “to provide high-quality healthcare in a culturally respectful and compassionate manner.” The goal of a healing art program at CNHS was not only to provide positive distraction but to reflect the unique Choctaw history, culture, and language, as well as to honor their ancestry.

The goal of this project was to develop a line of glass that promotes dignity in care environments by providing the necessary levels of visual privacy.

To create a world-class facility using evidence-based design. "The new space will allow us to meet growing needs and continue to offer the medical quality and fivestar service for which The Heart Hospital – Baylor Plano has become known.” – Mark Valentine, CEO

The transitional design is intended to set the tone for Wellness Point, a new mixed-use district focused on healthcare, retail, and residential uses that will eventually become the city’s southern gateway. By incorporating an urgent care model into the traditional ER setting and including Florida Hospital's Lean Track model, the facility's goal was the improvement of wait times, allowing patients to be seen at the appropriate level of care based on acuity.

ARCH Design’s goal was to complement the views of Forest Park and the bold super graphics already included in the design of the space with art that related to the hospital’s surrounding community and its rich cultural offerings. However, adhering to the stringent fire code was the highest priority, so the ARCH team researched materials and designed custom pieces that both exceeded safety standards and upheld this conceptual framework.

The goals of this project were to discover the challenges of a new entry portal and determine design decisions to enable clarity for patients, families, and staff and to create an entry that matched the vision of this world-class hospital.

As outlined in the accompanying Backgrounder, behavioral and mental health (BMH) patient populations may present a higher risk for self-harm or harm to others. This brief includes an update to the content developed in 2013 through a consensus-based expert workgroup. Design considerations are outlined in the associated Design Strategies and the online Safety Risk Assessment (SRA).