Description

The design of Solothurn’s new public hospital is centred around the patient. The placement of the beds at right angles creates two different bed locations of equal status, and the angular twist in the floor plan reinforces this, marking out a space for each person and creating a corner mid-room into which the patient cupboards have been fitted. High-quality materials, such as wooden parquet flooring, and the harmonious colour concept contribute to the impression of a healing environment rather than a hospital.

The new building for Solothurn Public Hospital is the product of an international competition for a new hospital with 327 beds and surgery, obstetrics, intensive care, outpatient and emergency units. Built on the grounds of the existing hospital, which had to remain fully operational during the construction period, the new complex takes the form of an L-shaped structure inserted around the existing buildings.

The new building consists of a two-storey base of exposed concrete for the public zones and examination and treatment areas, on top of which the wards are placed. Separating the two is a glazed recessed floor. The wards are fronted by striking, sculptural brise-soleils made of white concrete that cover the exterior of the cuboid bed block. Two inner courtyards, reaching below grade, provide additional lighting in the interior.

The floor plan of the main floors is divided into two functionally separate access areas, one for the patients, the other for staff, beds and materials. Straight paths parallel to the outer walls – leading towards a daylit point – ensure easy orientation in the building. As patients walk along the bright corridors with a view of the park, they pass various departments without crossing paths with staff or the supply and disposal systems.

Each patient room has two separate zones, one for each patient: the beds are placed at right angles and a twist in the floor plan produces a step in the cross walls that demarcates the foot of one bed area and creates a niche for the head end of the other bed. The patients’ cupboards are fitted into these corners so that they do not stand in the room where they might obstruct the view or movement in the room. The angled placement of the beds means the beds stand further apart, affording each patient more personal space. Compared with a conventional side-by-side arrangement, the rearward bed has a much better, unobstructed view out of the window. Each patient, therefore, has their own view but can screen off themselves by drawing a curtain as desired.

Nursing staff were consulted for the design of the patient bathrooms, and especially the arrangement of the elements and the choice of materials and colours. The bathroom core is a prefabricated rectangular concrete cell with seamless polyurethane wall and floor coatings. The flush-fitted shelves and glove dispenser in the wall next to the wide acrylic stone washbasin are likewise designed for optimal hygiene and ease of cleaning. Yellow or pink highlights enliven the grey base colour, adding more vibrant moments of colour.

For the façade, a system of fixed brise-soleils was developed that in addition to protecting against glare and overheating ensures an unobstructed view outside and adequate natural illumination. It shields partially against views in from outside while allowing for solar gain in the winter. A curtain designed by the artist Guido Wiederkehr can be drawn across the window. The materials and furnishings are restrained – wood parquet flooring and a wooden shelf-strip above the bed. The latter incorporates the necessary medical connections and an indirect light source so that the impression of a comfortable room predominates without restricting medical necessities.

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Originally published in: Wolfgang Sunder, Julia Moellmann, Oliver Zeise, Lukas Adrian Jurk, The Patient Room, Birkhäuser, 2020.