CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini - Women’s & Children’s Hospital and Emergency Department Expansion

With potential land acquisitions that would nearly double the hospital’s usable acreage, CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini needed a new master campus plan. WHR laid out a flexible road map to accommodate long-term growth of the campus as well as address short term needs of the hospital, which included expanding women and children’s services and the emergency department.

The project design goal was to celebrate life and services that embrace multiple generations, from genesis to the aged. The concept was inspired by the hospital’s commitment to compassionate healthcare in a welcoming and healing environment. The architectonics and materials responded to the architectural vernacular and climate of the region. With a strong focus on services for women and children, “A Celebration of Life and Services that Embrace Generations” became the overarching design concept for the Phase I expansion. The Hospital and design team worked hand in hand to develop key architectural elements that embody the celebration of life.

The new bed tower includes an emergency department and a new Women and Children’s Program, which includes Outpatient Women’s Services, a birthing suite, NICU and Pediatrics. Incorporation of natural light and access to the outdoors was a priority for CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini.

The emergency department features a dedicated healing garden for patient, family and staff, and an outdoor landscaped mall which is easily accessed from anywhere in the campus. The urgent care area was designed in a circular form with radial treatment rooms at the periphery and a central nurse’s station – a plan that maximizes visualization, minimizes walking distance and affords 360-degree visibility.