The newest Mountain Park Health Center clinic has opened on the corner of Broadway and McClintock in Tempe, Arizona. For its fifth clinic project for Mountain Park Health Center, theSmithGroupJJR team has transformed a former 30,000-square-foot boat dealership into a vibrant community health center that balances clinical efficiency with amenities that promote energy and wellness in an underserved community. 

“In partnership with SmithGroupJJR we developed a design that has far surpassed the typical expectation of a community health center, and together have redefined the focal point of our intersection. Our patients and staff have raved about the clinic and its purposeful design, and now our work in Tempe has just begun,” said Dr. John Swagert, CEO of Mountain Park Health Center.

Early collaboration and public engagement sessions with the Tempe Police Department, representatives from Arizona State University, community leaders and others helped shape the unique program for communal spaces and define the needs of the diverse population. Taking advantage of the large site, designers added amenities such as a guided walking trail, activity nodes, children’s play area, a small fruit orchard, a tree nursery and an activity lawn, giving the community a place to come together, even if not visiting the clinic.

Inside the clinic, large, open spaces and vibrant colors and graphics help to create a bright, healthy environment, as well as serve as a universal wayfinding device. Exam rooms are 30% larger than standard to accommodate families and their care teams and use sound-proof sliding doors that provide easy access for those with strollers or wheelchairs. Private offices are replaced by open, collaborative work areas to support Mountain Park’s Patient-Centered Medical Home care model, which gives patients access to a multi-specialty team of primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, behavioral health consultants and registered dietitians in a single visit.

Over the last five years, SmithGroupJJR and Mountain Park have developed a trusted partnership, designing, renovating and creating a new brand identity for five facilities across the Phoenix metropolitan area. These clinics support Mountain Park’s mission to take caregiving beyond the exam room, serving as health and wellness centers that offer the community access to a range of resources.

SmithGroupJJR is the nation’s 7th largest healthcare architecture firm, according to Building Design+Construction magazine’s 2017 Giants report. In the last five years, its Health Practice has completed more than 7.5 million square feet of healthcare facilities, including centers of excellence in oncology, rehabilitation and emergency medicine. Clients include Banner Health; Sutter Health; Adventist Health; Trinity Health; Cedars-Sinai Medical Center; and Kaiser Permanente, the largest managed health organization in the U.S. Work for these and other clients has earned the firm over 100 healthcare design awards, including eight prestigious Modern Healthcare design awards.