Research-Driven Behavioral Health Design

Research-Driven Behavioral Health Design

Providence Health & Services, Swedish Medical Center-Ballard, Behavioral Health Unit

Healthcare

ZGF provided planning and design for the 15,605 SF expansion and relocation of Swedish Medical Center’s Behavioral Health Unit from a high acuity, urban campus to a community hospital campus in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. Located on two floors, the project increases the number of patient beds from 10 to 22, and the Unit’s design creates a calm and soothing space that promotes recovery, mindfulness, respect and safety. Light colors and subtle texture on the walls provide visual interest. Materials that absorb sound—rubber floors and special ceiling tiles—foster a peaceful environment. Interior touches, such as mosaic tiles in the common area, provide textural interest while connecting patients to nature. The gradual change in tile color, from dark to very light at the ceiling plane, is a strategy of biophilic design that connotes the relationship between earth and sky. Lighting design throughout the Unit supports patients’ circadian function. This lighting changes through the course of a day to mimic the color and intensity of the sun’s light to support healthy circadian rhythms, which have been shown to increase the rate of healing and the effectiveness of the body’s absorption of medicine. Lights in comfort rooms offer patients the ability to change the shade of lighting as a calming effect and a measure of control.

Location

Seattle, WA

Square Feet

15,605

Completion date

2016