project04:P2
P2
The Academic Medical Center(AMC) is one of the largest hospitals in the Netherlands. The AMC is among the top medical centers in the world. The building dates back to the eighties of the last century. Up until now various architectural interventions have been made but the currently the quality of the building is right on the acceptable level. To maintain an acceptable quality of the building renovation and transformation is required. Therefor the AMC building has to be renewed to face the future. Designing new state of the art medical facilities as for creating a sustainble hospital with a neutral carbon footprint. Within the Architectural Enigineering graduation track this challenge is explored. This is the second presentation in the graduation track presenting my proposal for the new AMC based on Robotic Building principles.
The Academic Medical Center
The future of the hospitals
The modernisation of healtcare, this process of modernization is fueled by the availability of technology. There are two interdepent thrusts that underpin this radical transformation.
1. Decentralization
2. Connectivity
Challenges that pressure the current healthcare systems.
1. Managing the ubiquity of chronic illness.
2. Caring for an increasingly aging population.
3. The increasing cost of labour.
4. The adoption of new medical technologies.
1. Managing the ubiquity of chronic illness.
According to the world health organization chronic illnesses are the leading cause of mortalitly worldwide and are directly responsible for 63% deaths annualy. In addition to having a serious impact on health (morbidity), chronic ilnesses als have a profound economic burden to society, both in terms of healthcare costs and productivity losses.
This chronic illness is not only high, but it is also growing. The crux to the challenge is finding a way to manage multiple chronic conditions, as our healthcare sysyem was designed to address single episodic issues, not complex chronic conditions.
Chronic illnesses are nearly preventable, as they are caused mostly by behavioural and lifestyle choices. Maintaining a healthy diet, getting physical exercise, abstaining from tobacco use and not consuming harmful amounts of alcohol can prevent approximately 80% of cases of heart disease. diabetes and respiratoy diseases, and 40% cancers. Despite this fact, 50% of canadians are not consuming enough fruits and vegetables, 50% of adults are not getting enough exercise, 20% of Canadians are smokers and 5% consume alcohol on a daily basis. This supports the notion that community programs targeted at changing personal behaviour can have great impact on redcing the devastating effects of chronic illness, both on a social and an economic level.
2. Caring for an aging population.
Seniors consume large portions of the government healthcare spendings. One of the primary reasons that healthcare is more expensive for senios is that many are living with chronic conditions. The solution to caring for an aging population lies in how and where care is provided to seniors.
3. Increasing costs of labour.
4. Adoption of new medical technologies.
Two common strategies to help address the growing strains on existing health systems.
Community-based healthcare.
Connected healthcare.
Shifting left: moving toward community-based healthcare.
Healthcare systems are now making a more patient-centric "shift left" toward settings where the care goes to the patient, instead of the patient going to the care. These new settings may include a patient's home, community health centre, school or wokrplace, ad many more locations convenient to citizens, such as retail shops. Or even mobile units that move around the community, providing care where and when needed. These locations may seem like non-traditional locations to deliver healthcare in many cases they are already the preferred destination; for example, flu vaccinations provided at the workplace or local pharmacy, wound care provided at home by a visiting nurse, diabetes nutrition education provided at a local community centre and so on.
Services in the community that can affect health are also in play. It has been well codumented that many other social and environmental factors wokr together to affect a person's health and ultimate need for healthcare services. As a result of this reasearch, health systems are increasingly investing in programs, services and resources that aren't commonly considered part of the formal medical care sysyem, in order to reduce the demand for healthcare services downstream. For instance improving sidewalks and pathways in a neighbourhood can encourage pedestrain and cyclist usage, thereby increasing physical activity and decreasing the risk of community members developing or advancing chronic disease.
By shifting healthcare and illness-prevention services outside traditional healtcare delivery locations, patients, providers and health system itself can reap a number of benefits that include but not limited to, the following:
