5 Factors Shaping Healthcare Facility Construction In U.S.

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Healthcare facility construction can be influenced by a number of things, ranging from development costs to the level of potential patient comfort.

Healthcare architecture firms, Simone Health, implements their knowledge surrounding the development of healthcare facilities to share 5 factors shaping US healthcare facility construction.

1. Integrated Approach: Need for Multi-Use Facilities

Multi-use facilities are becoming increasingly popular in the healthcare community because of their ability to offer more flexible and personalized patient care. The importance of quality patient care has become more prioritized and some small-scale centers offer a level of care, comfort and convenience that is missing when it comes to major healthcare facilities

2. Increase Technology:  Must be Used to Its Full Potential

The implementation of increased health IT resources can drastically improve the quality of care that is delivered by health experts. When constructing healthcare facilities, updated technology must be used to its full potential. Providing accurate patient records in a shorter amount of time allows doctors to better understand patient needs and can lead to faster diagnosis and treatment.

3. Sustainability

Healthcare facilities use large amounts of energy and resources in order to maintain function and operate smoothly. The construction of healthcare facilities that keep maintainable and green options in mind promotes cost-savings, sustainability, and long-term value.

4. Costs

Healthcare facility construction is driven by costs and cost-saving techniques. The right approach when it comes to the planning and design of a healthcare facility can lower the overall costs of construction. Decisions such as the prefabrication of buildings is essential for producing a cost-effective building design.

5. Modular & Prefab Options: Help Plan for Growth

Modular construction options consist of using repeated prefabricated structures. The pieces are constructed remotely and then assembled on-site, using a factory-like manufacturing technique to make the sections of the building in half the normal time. Modular and prefabricated buildings also offer an extremely cost-effective option for construction that will ultimately promote a plan for facility growth.

 

Source: PR Newswire

What Is Making The MOB Segment So Healthy?

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Since 2012, annual revenues from the pharmaceutical industry have increased from nearly $200 billion to almost $300 billion in 2018. In the same period, single-tenant medical office transactions jumped from almost $1.5 billion in 2012 to $2.5 billion last year.

What is causing the significant increase in single-tenant medical office transactions along with the robust health-care market?

The simple answer is an aging population. There is no question that America is getting older. According to the United States Census Bureau, the number of Americans 65 years and older is expected to double over the next three decades. An aging population requires more drugs, more health-care professionals and  more space to deliver medical services. For investors in net lease properties, the medical office sector can provide a strong investment opportunity to ride this seemingly unstoppable trend.

First, the space is more accessible to a wider group of investors with an average transaction size of nearly $10 million in 2018 vs. over $20 million for the rest of the single-tenant office sector.

Secondly, medical office is commanding higher per-square-foot valuations than the net lease office sector overall, with buyers paying a 7 percent premium per square foot over non-medical assets. This reflects the robust demand and healthy market fundamentals, as investors can take comfort in owning a solidly performing medical office property that commands a strong valuation.

In an investor survey recently conducted by JLL, respondents’ interest in office assets leased to health-care-related tenants outpaced that of technology, business services, government and financial services. Investors who are targeting the health-care space in 2019 indicated they are allocating on average 20 percent of their capital towards medical office assets.

Additionally, apart from industrial assets, investors indicated that the health-care sector was the most likely to exhibit a decrease in cap rates in the remainder of the year. This, along with the other factors previously mentioned, has attracted a diversified and evenly distributed buyer population. Institutional and private investors as well as REITs have been putting money into this property type, which indicates the depth of investor interest across the spectrum of buyers. Broad investor interest and increased demand is expected to continue to put owners in a strong position to sell their investments at attractive valuations in the future.

Finally, the asset class on average commands lower cap rates than the rest of the single-tenant office space, due to the mission criticality of the real estate. Its cap rate is reflective of its dependable stream of income. On average, medical cap rates are 30 basis points lower than those in the office sector overall.

As net lease investors navigate the uncertainty of the retail sector, the medical office space appears poised to offer an alternative, with strong, dependable returns that are more difficult to disrupt with technology and the internet. As long-term trends in health care continue to point toward longer lifespans and increased care, medical office space will remain critical and demand will increase, providing opportunities for investors to capitalize on this unstoppable force: growing old.

 

Source: Commercial Property Executive

Designing Healthcare Spaces To Be More Inclusive

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Humanizing healthcare environments can improve both patient and staff wellbeing and is an essential consideration in the design of healthcare spaces.

Often, though, hospital designs might cater to the needs of patients but overlook the need for a safe and rejuvenating workplace that serves its staff too.

A research report on the topic of Design Matters for Nurses: Hospital Design For Nurse Attraction And Retention (HASSELL with University of Melbourne, May 2016) states:

“Aesthetics and maintenance of a workplace serve as a daily reminder of the value their employees place on their work. Nurses have identified a number of environmental qualities that affect their daily work experience, including temperature, noise, odor and color, but the main factors were access to natural light and maintenance.”

The report also notes that nurses often complain about the general lack of space away from patient work.

“The underestimated value of staff may be more significant than hospital management perceives, commented Michaela Sheahan, senior design researcher at HASSELL in a recent comment piece for Indesign magazine. “But this can be rectified with a renewed focus on the hospital as a workplace, as well as a place to treat patients.”

For instance, creating comfortable areas for meal breaks could provide relief from the high-intensity work that hospital staff members have to face every day. Outdoor dining areas for staff members can bring about a sense of enjoyment around mealtimes, creating a substantial distinction between work and break areas.

Dedicated spaces for documentation tasks with proper ergonomic support could help reduce strain and fatigue. Even the inclusion of large windows that bring in natural lighting could help impact patient healing and staff wellbeing.

Another emerging trend is using biophilic design principles to craft a more soothing indoor experience. Think improved ventilation, acoustic comfort, enhanced natural lighting, external natural views and the use of natural materials, patterns and colours.

By humanizing healthcare spaces through biophilia there is potential to empower patients, aid recovery, reduce stress and improve the emotional wellbeing of staff, in turn creating a more helpful, healing environment.

A timely example is the Royal Adelaide Hospital, designed by Silver Thomas Hanley in a joint venture with DesignInc. Planned around landscaped courtyards, the hospital has been conceptualized as a park within a hospital.

Perhaps it is worth exploring the idea of design that caters to both the patient and members of staff within a healthcare facility. It is, after all, in a healthcare organization’s best interests to have a happy and healthy team who love coming in to work and are fully invested in their duties.

 

Source: Architecture & Design