Photo courtesy of Flad & Associates, copyright Christopher Barrett Hedrich Blessing

The new PICU was driven by the desire to improve the quality of space for patients, families, caregivers, and support personnel. The existing unit consisted of three six-bed pods, which allowed little space for families, staff, and support. Acoustical and visual privacy was virtually non-existent and, more significantly, the space did little to convey a feeling of warmth and compassionate caregiving.

The new unit has 24 single-bed, private rooms with much more family space at the bedside as well as in the caregivers' and support areas. Nurses are located outside the patient rooms. The unit has two central nurses' stations which are based upon the use of moveable furniture rather than fixed casework.

Visibility was a high priority for the staff to monitor the patients. This concern drove the design of a sub-nurses' station between pairs of patient rooms with glass to allow observation of both patients from a location where nurses can do their charting, order lab work, and perform other activities. Between each pair of patient rooms, there is also a set of glazed sliding doors. This allows the staff to observe and walk between the rooms without going into the corridor.

A multi-purpose room has been set aside that is apart from the patient rooms, where members of the health care team can privately discuss delicate issues with the family. A family room contains a small kitchen allows families to prepare meals; a TV and VCR for entertainment; and a separate room for sleeping.

Design of the PICU is the idea of "Florida's natural world." A color palette was chosen to remind children of being outside, and to reinforce the calm healing power of the Florida outdoors.

Project Information
Building Owner:		Shands Children's Hospital
Owner Contact:		Brad Pollitt, Vice President of Facilities
Building Location:		Gainesville, Florida UNITED STATES
Project Type:		Renovation
Principal Building Function:		Children's Hosptial
Project Delivery Method:		Construction Management
Project Timeline		Sep 2000 Planning Start Dec 2000 Design Start Sep 2001 Construction Start Jun 2002 Completion Last known status: Completed
Project Cost:		$3,000,000
Construction Cost:		$2,400,000
Cost Per Sq. Ft:		$130
		About These Cost Figures
Building Information
Project Includes:		Healthcare Healthcare: Intensive Care Unit Healthcare: Pediatric Nursing
Total GSF:		18,000
Total NSF:		11,160
Efficiency:		62%
Building Services:		Compressed air, vacuum, oxygen
Laboratory Parameters
Casework Mat'l:		p.lam/solid surface
Project Team
Architect		Flad Architects
Engineer - MEP		Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI)
Engineer - Structural		Flad Structural Engineers
Supplier - Headwalls		Hill-Rom Company Inc.
Profile Created 10/01/2003
Last Updated 04/04/2006
About the Reported Cost Figures The cost figures reported are supplied by the firms that submitted these projects for publication, which in most cases are the designers or builders. Whereas these sources are intimately familiar with their projects, they may not be fully aware of the owners' finally-realized and recorded costs. In some cases, costs are truly and completely accounted for, and in others they represent a near approximation of the final costs. Costs have not been adjusted for year of construction, nor has any attempt been made to make regional cost adjustments. Further, costs are not comparable on any kind of detailed standard costing model. Hence, it is possible for the cost of one building to include a steam boiler, while the cost of a comparable building might not include the boiler, if steam is being supplied from an already existing campus grid. Or, in another case, a building might include excess boiler capacity to supply steam to another building. Some submittals include fees or unusual site improvements as part of the construction costs, which others do not.

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