The Victorian Heart Hospital, designed by Conrad Gargett + Wardle, has officially opened in Clayton, Victoria. The first of its kind in both Australia and the southern hemisphere, the facility is the contemporary benchmark in cardiac hospital design.
The $564 million project will be operated by Monash Health. Comprising 196 beds along with seven catheterization laboratories, an entire floor will be dedicated to research conducted by Monash University and the independent Monash Cardiovascular Research Centre.
With human experience the priority of the design team, biophilic and salutogenic principles have been adopted, with the external spaces utilised as places of tranquillity and healing.
“Scientific research documents indicate that providing a connection with nature within healthcare facilities significantly improves patient outcomes, including their experience and recovery rate,” says Conrad Gargett Principal Paul Emmett.
“Armed with this knowledge, we designed the Victorian Heart Hospital with a large central courtyard—the ‘gravitational heart’—and have maximised opportunities for engagement with the outdoors and surrounding landscape.”
The gravitational heart operates as the centre of the facility, with the internal spaces wrapping around it. The heart additionally gives patients and visitors the opportunity to connect with the outdoors.
“The hospital’s design needed to allow the working day’s activities to be seamless, and its organisation to be clear and legible. Equally important are the spatial, material, and ambient qualities which define the hospital’s character,” Emmett continues.
“It’s these aspects that will strongly influence the mindset of its occupants and ultimately the type of healing environment that has been created.”
Circulation corridors frame views of the courtyards, nearby sports fields and Dandenong Ranges. The design team visited a number of cardiac hospitals across the globe, to ascertain both the successes and shortcomings of each facility.
“Experiencing other heart hospitals really allowed us to challenge the norm of traditional hospital design and how to do things according to Australasian Health Facility Guidelines in the pursuit of innovation,” Emmett says.
Patients’ experiences will be entirely individual, in a bid to relieve stress levels of both them and their families.
“Upon arrival at the Victorian Heart Hospital, there is a sense of openness, with large voids and a central café, creating a feeling of a civic place rather than a hospital,” says Wardle Principal Stefan Mee.
“The progressive journey through the building gradually increases a sense of tranquillity in the clinical spaces, creating an atmosphere of safety and comfort for patients.”
A rich, earthy palette characterises the interior, with the 400-year-old Matheson Tree that sits at the entrance directly inspiring the feel of the hospital. The striking weathered steel façade establishes the Victorian Heart Hospital as a landmark building on the Monash campus, while gently nesting within the tree-lined landscape and providing protection from the sun.
The entire process of crafting the facility was initiated via a design workshop facilitated by former Harvard Professor Sarah Williams Goldhagen, who specialises in landscapes, cities and urban design, and infrastructure and public art. All clients, stakeholders and designers were involved within the workshop, which led to the final outcome.
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Images: Supplied
