By Healthcare Facilities Today

The Benjamin Russell Hospital for Children in Birmingham, Ala., was built to keep pace with a growing patient population and increasing technological demands, but also to improve the young patients' experience, according to an article in the November issue of Healthcare Facilities Management magazine.

The hospital, located near the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was built with a primarily glass exterior to set it apart from the red brick and precast concrete of the campus. The facade of the new facility is interspersed by colored panels, to give the hospital a cheerful aspect and make it easily identifiable on the Birmingham skyline, according to the article

All patient rooms face north toward downtown Birmingham or south toward Red Mountain. Besides providing views, this orientation avoids the glare and heat of  an eastern or western exposure, the article said. The project was awarded a Gold rating for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The main lobby "has a clean, fun look that is bright and cheerful," said Doug Compton, AIA, LEED AP, in the article. Compton is a principal with Dallas-based architecture firm HKS. "There's nothing institutional about it." 

The exterior glass brings in natural light that is reflected in a high-sheen terrazzo flooring, the article said. 

"The floor was polished with an 800-grit diamond polisher instead of the standard 100-grit; the higher you polish a terrazzo like that, the more slip-resistant it is," said Iris Dates, IIDA, LEED AP, EDAC, vice president, HKS. "[The high gloss] made the floor even safer for people to walk on."

Read the article.