Page 43 - March 2017

BUILDING VALUE WITH OUR

HEALTHCARE REAL ESTATE CLIENTS, OUR PEOPLE

AND THE WORLD
Building Better Sounding Facilities

Every healthcare pro - • Construction administra-
vider team needs a facili- tion (CA)
ty that enhances their • Commissioning
care efforts. Every Con sider ations of acoustics
patient needs a place of are key factors in improving
healing in order to speed the patient experience, and
their return to wellness. should be discussed and
The acoustical environ- planned for in the early
ment plays a large role in stages of conceptual design.
helping to achieve these These considerations include
goals. mechanical system (air con-
Healthcare facilities ditioning/ ventilation) noise,
standards for providers sound isolation between
are summarized in sever- BY BENNETT BROOKS, spaces, speech privacy
al documents published PE, FASA, INCE where needed (admitting/
by the American Society examination rooms/billing),
for Healthcare Engineer - room reverberation and
ing (ASHE), part of the American sound absorption in vital spaces (nurses
Hospital Association. These documents stations and dining halls), and sleep
are governed by the Facilities Guidelines enhancing quiet in patient areas. It is
Institute (FGI). The FGI Guidelines are much easier to create a successful, effi-
used as the governing standards by cient and productive facility when criti-
organizations like the Joint Commission cal factors are included from the begin-
(JC) when they conduct site survey eval- ning.
uations for the accreditation of health The costs to build a better sounding
care providers. The Guidelines cover facility are similar to, and often less than
topics from the planning, design, con- the costs to build a poor facility. These
struction and commissioning of facili- savings can include the initial costs as
ties, to the specific requirements for each well the life cycle costs for the facility.
of a wide variety of facility types, serving The creative use of resources, financial,
a range of patients and procedures. material and human, is the key to a well-
Of particular interest for us are the FGI crafted building plan. It is important to
requirements for the acoustical design of engage the team of caregivers who will be
facilities. The Guidelines cover topics working in each area of the new or reno-
such as meeting legal requirements for vated facility, early on in the planning
speech privacy for HIPAA, workplace process, in order to develop a facility
noise for OSHA, local and state building design which is responsive to provider
codes, and local and state limits on envi- and patient needs. As part of this plan-
ronmental sound from facility exterior ning process a soundscape analysis of the
noise sources. planned facility should be conducted,
Not specifically included in these stan- based on leveraging the experience of
dards is the evolving science of patient caregivers and patient perception data.
experience, which is a key factor for pro- Workshops and charrettes are great tools
ducing successful patient outcomes. The to bring providers into the design team
science of perception, by patients and and to incorporate their ideas into the
caregivers, of their acoustical environ- building plan. The role of the acoustical
ment is called Soundscape Analysis. consultant is to translate the sonic needs
Beyond the basics of meeting building of providers and patients into architec-
codes and legal requirements, the ulti- tural and engineering design solutions
mate goal of a facility should be achiev- and specifications.
ing the best possible patient experience The results of careful facility planning
and outcomes. This objective should be include better patient outcomes, satisfy-
kept in mind when building or renovat- ing patient experiences and a sense of
ing any facility, major system or process. accomplishment for caregivers. That can
The acoustic parts of these building com- be very rewarding for the provider.
ponents should be planned, designed We welcome your thoughts on the
and implemented in such a way as to acoustics of facilities, and how that
enhance the healing process. In architec- relates to your efforts to create an envi- For more information about our South Florida healthcare experience, contact:
tural terms these efforts are done in a ronment of healing.
Luis J. Cano, AIA, LEED AP, EDAC, NCARB
series of phases:
• Conceptual design and space Bennett Brooks is President of Brooks SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT
programming Acoustics Corp. For more information,
• Schematic design (SD) visit www.brooksacoustics.com 786.532.2100
• Design development (DD) or call (754) 229-1450.
luis_cano@gspnet.com
• Construction documents (CD)

Subscribe to... www.greshamsmith.com

SOUTH FLORIDA HOSPITAL NEWS & HEALTHCARE REPORT today!
ARCHITECTURE l ENGINEERING l INTERIORS l STRATEGIC PLANNING l PROGRAMMING
Subscribe online at www.southfloridahospitalnews.com or call 561-368-6950 LEAN DESIGN l PROCESS IMPROVEMENT l WAYFINDING l BRANDED ENVIRONMENTS

South Florida Hospital News southfloridahospitalnews.com March 2017 43