The new Woman’s Hospital, one of the most advanced medical facilities in the Gulf South for women and infants, opened to the public on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012.
HKS, Inc., Dallas served as the architect. The construction management team included JE Dunn Construction Group, Austin; Milton J. Womack, Inc., Baton Rouge; and Arkel Constructors, Baton Rouge.
A pioneer in women’s specialty hospitals, the newly constructed Woman’s Hospital is distinctive in design and function. The new Woman’s is a strikingly modern facility that provides the highest levels of infant care and specializes in women’s medical and surgical needs, all within a family-centered environment.
“Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge took an innovative approach to the charrette process when designing its new project,” said HKS Principal Jeff Stouffer, AIA. “Rather than using the normal design process of presenting and re-presenting various options, HKS designers listened and watched as more than 100 staff at Woman’s Hospital and representatives from the community used colored dots, Velcro boards with moveable pieces as well as actual furnishings and equipment to physically mock up the optimal hospital layout and determine the exterior and interior vision.
“Designers – in real-time processes – documented and tested the overall visioning process; exterior and interior design; planning, blocking and site utilization options; patient room and bed unit configurations; circulation alternatives; and patient mock-up rooms,” said Stouffer. “All participants' voices were heard and incorporated into the final design thinking.”
The result is an inclusive design that offers an excellent family experience from arrival through departure. Occupying 100 acres at the corner of Airline Highway and Stumberg, near Pecue Lane, the hospital’s address is 100 Woman’s Way. In addition to a nearly 500,000-square-foot hospital, the campus includes a physician office building that houses more than 75 physicians.
Additional statistics and features:
- Cost to Build: $327 million
- Acreage: 225 total acres; 85 acres developed
- Square Footage:
497,167-square-foot main hospital with five-stories
249,650-square-foot physician office building with two towers of four and five stories
68,849-square-foot support services building with two-stories
23,464-square-foot central energy plant with two-stories
- Patient Room Size: 390 square feet
- Antepartum Patient Center: 800 square feet with kitchenette, washer/dryer, and education area
- Adult Beds: 168 licensed beds
- Bassinets: 146 newborn beds, 72 NICU beds
- Operating Rooms: 13
- NICU Room Size: Individual rooms: 150 square feet each
- NICU Rooms: 54 single-family rooms (12 with overnight accommodations, six designed for multiples)
- NICU Family Resource Center: 470 square feet with kitchenette, washer/dryer, Wi-Fi, day lounge
HKS, ranked among the top healthcare-specialized architectural firms by Modern Healthcare and BD World Architecture, understands and embraces holistic healthcare. Operating from 29 offices throughout the United States, Latin America, United Kingdom, Middle East, India and China, the firm focuses on innovative design, process and delivery. Through a focused visioning approach, HKS collaborates with each client to evaluate transformational concepts that support and improve the patient and family experience, operational efficiency, the latest in technology and future flexibility.