HED collaborated with healthcare participants to design the Children’s Hospital of Michigan at the Detroit Medical Center in Troy, Michigan.

For children of all ages, a visit to the hospital can carry negative connotations. In our recent year partnership with the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, we envisioned a new kind of hospital—one that would create a new experience for young patients and their families. Welcoming, soothing, playful—even fun!—the resulting design challenges outdated hospital stereotypes and advances patient care.

To inform our approach, we implemented an Integrate Facility Design (IFD) process. A full-scale cardboard mockup was created to vet every aspect of the design, from the size of the rooms to the number of steps required to perform a task. We invited healthcare providers, hospital staff, patients, families and community members to review the mockup and provide input. Physicians, nurses and support staff also participated in intensive, daylong design sessions dedicated to improving performance and elevating healthcare delivery practices.

This collaborative approach is evident in every facet of the design. Emulating a colorful tumble of children’s building blocks, the glazed-brick exterior extends a playful invitation to patients and families. Inside, a bright, carefully-considered interior simplifies wayfinding, minimizes wait time and maximizes every square foot of space.

The completed new facility impacts every element of patient care changing the ways surgeries are performed, minimizing programmatic waste, decreasing no-shows and lead times across the boards, and improving the lives of thousands of Michigan’s youngest patients.

Architects: HED
Photography: John D’Angelo, Justin Maconochie