The new six-story, 125,000-sq.-ft. Inpatient Care Tower is designed to be flexible, operationally efficient and equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The new facility also establishes a new campus master plan for future growth and replacement.

Valley Presbyterian Hospital Inpatient Tower, Van Nuys Photo by Erhard Pfeiffer

The architecture addresses humanistic issues by infusing natural light throughout the building and the presence of a central healing garden for patients and their families. The interior design is based on hospitality concept-patient rooms resemeble those found in hotels.

In response to the impact of the Northridge earthquake 10 years ago and SB 1953 (a California law mandating that hospitals meet seismic standards), Valley Presbyterian Hospital determined that seismically upgrading its existing three towers to current codes would not be cost effective or feasible due to the limitations of its original 1960's design. Consequently, a new six-story inpatient tower was planned to replace the licensed inpatient beds in the existing towers and provide more efficient facilities.

The new tower houses general acute-care beds, intensive-care units, a pediatric intensive-care unit and the largest neonatal intensive-care unit in the San Fernando Valley.

Situated in a landscaped zone, the building is surrounded by a garden with natural buffers for patient privacy and healing. A landscaped courtyard acts as a buffer for patient rooms that face the existing building.

The internal planning is expressed in the massing and articulation of the exterior. A colonnade of columns is exposed at the ground floor, expressing the setback. Material and massing of the patient tower is solid with punched openings. Glazing elements vary in scale, depth and translucence, which modulate the elevations and establishing a rhythm for each bay. The public waiting areas and bridge connections on levels two through six have floor-to- ceiling glass that accentuate the solid masses of the building, providing a constant visual connection to the exterior.

Separation of public and private circulation is expressed in the planning and massing of the new addition. Patient floors are free of elevator shafts and egress stairs. To further reduce conflict between public and private circulation, public waiting is removed from the main patient spaces.

Natural light has been incorporated into the design to facilitate wayfinding at corridors. In addition, patient rooms and patient toilets have a combination of operable windows and clerestory glazing to maximize natural light opportunities. Nursing stations are centralized, encouraging communication and interaction between Valley Presbyterian Hospital staff.

The Development Team

Owner: Valley Presbyterian Hospital
Architect: Lee, Burkhart, Liu Inc.
Construction manager: McCarthy Construction
General contractor: C.W. Driver
Engineers: John A. Martin & Associates (structural)
M-E Engineers (mechanical/electrical/plumbing)
KPFF (civil engineer)

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