By Healthcare Facilities Today

At Children’s Medical Center Dallas, an organization of more than 3,000 people and 200 departments, three groups were to be co-located in a new space: Engineering, Safety, and Planning Design & Construction, according to an article on the Contract magazine website.

The three groups had never shared the same floor or even the same building.  Each brought their own work processes and culture.  Due to spatial constraints, the new space would require a shared open-office setting. This would be their first project under a new way of working, as they developed a vision for their new environment, the article said.

The medical center wanted the space to embody a new way of working for the three departments. The space should be a projection of their values and the changes in their staff, roles, and focus. 

In a healthcare environment, engineering, safety, and planning design & construction needed a space that would unite them as it educated the greater organization on the value that they provide. When implemented, the design will help the three teams to speak with one voice. In this way, the space will be both a tool for change and for in-house marketing, according to the article

In developing a strategy for change management, the leadership opened a discussion to the users. As a result, Children’s was able to incorporate lessons from across disciplines. The users took ownership of ensuring that the space would adapt to their work styles, the article said.

A part of the change management process was an exercise to develop a core list of seven principles for the three teams: Stewardship, Sustainability, Patient Focus, Service Excellence, Innovation, Collaboration, and Safety.

Those values informed the design process, such as a desire to establish a collaborative working culture.  

Read the article.