Cedars-Sinai's new Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion, designed to bring patient care and translational research together in one site and encourage scientists and physicians to collaborate when developing new treatments, has won a prestigious design award from the American Institute of Architects California Council.
The new building, located on the eastern edge of the Cedars-Sinai campus at the corner of San Vicente Boulevard and Gracie Allen Drive, has been named to the organization's 2013 Design Award list. The 800,000-square-foot Pavilion was cited by the award jury for its groundbreaking approach in the creation of a structure to house both clinical care and research laboratories.
"This is an innovative project done really well, and a slam dunk," said the awards jury, which examined nearly 300 buildings during the review process before selecting 21 for excellence in architecture.
"The Pavilion was designed to support medical innovation and discovery as well as provide patients with a comfortable setting in which to receive the highest level of care," said Larry Colvin, Cedars-Sinai vice president of Facilities Planning, Design and Construction. "We are excited that an organization as respected as the American Institute of Architects California Council recognizes and celebrates the value of the Pavilion's design."
The Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion houses the medical center's neurosciences programs, the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and Regenerative Medicine Institute laboratories, as well as outpatient surgery suites, an imaging area and an education center. In its first year of operation, more than 150,000 patients are expected to visit the Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion for outpatient procedures, diagnostic evaluations and imaging services.
In traditional hospital settings, physicians spend long hours in examination and procedure rooms tending to their patients while scientists are in their laboratories, working to discover new breakthroughs. This arrangement rarely allows doctors and researchers to interact with each other on the job.
Creating a new tradition, the areas in the Pavilion where physicians treat patients are located adjacent to research scientists' laboratories. Break areas are located in between labs and patient care areas, also encouraging casual meetings which could lead to innovative collaborations.
For patient comfort and convenience, the Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion is equipped with six levels of parking, imaging facilities, a blood lab, café and pharmacy, ensuring that patients can receive a variety of treatments and services in one place. The building is connected to the main medical center by the Plaza level walkway and by the Sue and Bill Gross Skywalk, which links the Pavilion to the fifth floor of the medical center.
As an eco-friendly building, the Pavilion is designed to meet the requirements of a Gold Certified building under the U.S. Green Building Council LEED™ Program. It features an innovative double glass walled exterior that provides both energy savings and thermal comfort for occupants. Automated building control systems will regulate the building's energy use. Solar panels on the rooftop of Parking Lot 4, located adjacent to the Pavilion, will provide power to the parking garage. Designed by HOK LA, and constructed by Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction beginning in 2009, the project was completed on schedule and under budget.
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