Gresham Smith designed the Country Walk Freestanding Emergency Department to appeal to the younger generations and revamp the Baptist Health South Florida brand, located in Miami, Florida.

With a new brand identity, Baptist Health South Florida was looking to engage younger generations, particularly Millennials. In this spirit, Baptist Health South Florida partnered with Gresham Smith to design the health system’s new generation of emergency care centers. The Country Walk Freestanding Emergency Department (FSED), initially designed as a prototype to support the new branding, is classic yet modern and addresses the desire for both social interaction and sophisticated technology.

The interior design reflects the state-of-the-art care patients can expect to receive and enhances the experience for patients and staff. The Gresham Smith design team focused on the idea of transparency, incorporating glass and creating clean sightlines from the front to the back of the facility. Trellis structures and a projected canopy for patient drop-off create an inviting environment, welcoming patients into the space. A clerestory in the center of the building, something that’s not typically seen in institutional EDs, helps bring even more natural light into a core space that is traditionally artificially lit.

Not only is the facility critical to establishing Baptist Health South Florida’s new brand, it also presented an opportunity to evaluate and design new processes focused on efficiency. Exam rooms feature Jack and Jill toilets and sliding glass doors that save space. Levels of acuity are organized from front to back, while shared services and standardized rooms allow functions to flex based on demand.

Architect: Gresham Smith
Photography: Sandy DeWitt