The overall concept for the Brackenridge Hospital was to integrate technology and innovation into the healing environment for the patient, staff and family while reducing the “clinical feel” of the hospital. The typical nurse station was decentralized and brought to the room as a ‘nurse bay.’ The introduction of long expanses of glass and break-away sliding doors allowed for open visual observation to increase response time from the staff. Each bay is equipped to handle the charting and communication requirements usually found in a crowded nurse station while remaining only steps away from the patient. The nurse station, now more compact, is a hub for procedure carts, nursing management, physicians and residents.

Brackenridge Hospital, the major trauma hospital in Travis County, needed to renovate an existing patient wing into a 14-bed Critical Care Unit in order to accommodate the increasing demand on their current CCU department and staff. Aware of the immediate need for these services, the project team identified the inherent budget and schedule benefits of approaching this as a design build project. The project approach resulted in a streamlined process of design implementation and innovative staffing solutions.

Each patient room has a partition that creates a space for families to rest while visiting. The partition uses colorful resin panels to diffuse the hospital light and introduce a unique design touch to each space.