Case Studies
Queensland Children’s Hospital
Design Feature
Type of project
Infrastructure
State
Queensland
Location
Urban
The Queensland Children’s Hospital in inner-city Brisbane was designed to world’s best practice for patient centred care. Opened in 2014, the hospital has the vision to deliver a facility that heals the body and the mind, created through the process of evidence-based design.
Health promoting infrastructure
The design of the hospital responds to its urban environment to reflect its demand as a public building and its role in the promotion of health. These issues include responses to the urban environment, demand as a public building and the contribution of hospitals to the promotion of health.
The design takes a ‘salutogenic’ approach in that it incorporates design strategies that research has shown to directly support patient health and wellbeing, rather than focusing solely on diseases and their causes. This approach embraces attributes that improve the patient journey such as clear wayfinding, connections to nature and the outside world, and providing a green and sustainable environment for patients and staff.
The design takes a ‘salutogenic’ approach in that it incorporates design strategies that research has shown to directly support patient health and wellbeing, rather than focusing solely on diseases and their causes. This approach embraces attributes that improve the patient journey such as clear wayfinding, connections to nature and the outside world, and providing a green and sustainable environment for patients and staff.
The landscape design of the Queensland Children’s Hospital has been informed by contemporary research, which increasingly shows the significance of nature and the built environment on health and wellbeing. Around 46,000 individual plants make up the healing gardens and therapeutic outdoor spaces.
The landscape includes a large green sloping roof with transplanted 30 year-old fig trees, state of the art play areas, and several rooftop gardens for recreation and rehabilitation. This responds to evidence that access to green space is positively associated with better mental health.
The original client briefing was for a welcoming, bright and supportive environment for young patients and their families. The design process began with research into the typology of the modern hospital and centred on the design concept represents a 'living tree' with double height spaces as the 'branches' that radiate from two vertical atria or ‘trunks' in the centre of the plan. Branches extend out to the street to form framing portals and balconies that act to bring light and air into the building. There is strong evidence that natural ventilation is more supportive of health than mechanical ventilation, and so this has been included wherever practical in the design of the hospital. Each branch is oriented toward a landmark to provide orientation for users to find their bearings within the building, which is an important wayfinding feature.
The design was founded on community engagement to encompass a broad definition of community including the hospital community, patients and their carers, other visitors, staff and the neighbouring community members. The consultation process yielded specific concerns from those who regularly visited or worked on the precinct, such as vehicle pedestrian conflicts, legibility and the need to create a front entrance with a strong sense of arrival and identity – as a front door would for a home.
The design promotes a positive, rich and stimulating architectural experience to incorporate landscape, maximise daylight and views, and facilitate wayfinding. It also incorporates a vibrant art program embracing both visual art and performance. The focus is on legibility and connection with public spaces to landscape at all levels.
Project team
- Conrad Gargett Lyons and partners
Project cost
Approximately $1.5 Billion
Health Value
- The design of the Queensland Children’s Hospital embraces the promotion of wellbeing for its patients, visitors and staff that extends out to the general public and broader community. The design concept is of a ‘living tree’ that strives for unity by reducing stress and anxiety, blurring traditional definitions of ‘inside’ and ‘outside’. The ultimate goal is to build a Sense of Place by promoting a healthier community through cultural engagement and urban renewal.
- Colour, natural materials and art in two and three-dimensions are used extensively in the building to promote patient wellbeing, providing engaging distractions for young patients. This use of colour supports the three-dimensional planning concept and contributes to intuitive wayfinding through the building with the aim to provide reassurance and reduce stress.
- The colourful exterior of the hospital incorporates the variegated greens and purples of Bougainvillea plantings in the adjacent parklands. Its massing presents a sculpted building form incorporating green spaces and landscaped roof gardens. The hospital’s iconic green sloping roof nurtures a total of 23,000 plants and is visible from the Brisbane CBD.
Economic value
- While the focus of the design is on patient wellbeing, it is recognised that the hospital is also a sizeable workplace with the need to attract and retain staff as well as to optimise staff satisfaction and productivity. Many staff working in this building are working in open plan offices for the first time, so the interior design places considerable emphasis on the amenity of these spaces. Staff amenity is a high priority in this design and has been given consideration through windows in operating theatres, landscaped staff terraces and well-designed and resourced education spaces.
Environmental value
- Locals to the city of Brisbane have traditionally navigated their way using hilltop landmarks that are external to the CBD. Mater Hill is one of these hilltops and it was clear that the hospital building would inevitably be prominent on the city skyline. As one of Brisbane’s major health and public institutions it was important that the urban design response considered the building as a key urban landmark.
- The Queensland Childrens Hospital development has transformed the environment with some simple but generous gestures to its context, with the landscape architecture connecting the building to Southbank. The selection of plant species further enhances the relationship with original plantings.
Social value
- With a large footprint the building occupies almost its entire site. Rather than being a constraint, this was realised as an opportunity for resolution of traffic issues in the local precinct. This also presented an opportunity to create a significant public space reinforcing the connection to SouthBank Parkland and enhancing the relationship with the heritage-listed Somerville House, which was formerly South Brisbane Town Hall.
- The need to resolve significant traffic issues between the health precinct and adjacent education precinct with two major schools, required an innovative approach to traffic planning. In doing so, this provided the opportunity to create a major public space and develop Sense of Place for the community.
- Views and access to green space are key features of the design and contribute to the healing environment of the hospital. Green rooves on the upper levels are enjoyed by patients and their families for both passive and active recreation. These spaces are also used as part of the hospital’s rehabilitation programs.
Use value
- The design elements of the facility combine to establish an important and memorable place. The extent to which it is embraced by its community determines its longevity and its contribution to economic and social sustainability.
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