The Healing Place: A Proposed Mental Health Care Center Biophilic Architecture

Project idea

The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to growing – and often unmet – mental health needs. The DOH estimates that at least 3.6 million Filipinos are facing mental health issues during the pandemic, including depression, substance use disorders such as alcohol use disorder, and mood disorders like bipolar disorder. COVID-19 infection in itself has been found to directly impact a person’s mental health.

DOH’s Mental Health Division Chief Health Program Officer, Frances Prescilla Cuevas says: “As the Department of Health and our health workers strive towards coping and living with this pandemic, we must find ways to care for the mental well-being of our fellow Filipinos who continue to suffer because of this current circumstance.”

This facility is one-story facility with multiple courtyards that allow for direct patient access. When at all possible, inpatient mental health facilities should be constructed at ground level, incorporating a home/village-type design. This allows for a more homelike feel and greater visual access to the outdoors. In addition, a single story design allows direct access to and use of designated outdoor areas by patients. The floor plan incorporates an open, pod-like design, with a residential feel. A central nursing station has visibility down the three patient wings and direct observation of patient activity areas, the entrance to the unit and a central outdoor courtyard.


1. Open floor plans: Not only does an open floor plan improve visibility in the space, allowing staff to keep a closer watch on patients, it also makes rooms feel less crowded when occupied. Designs should not include hidden corners.

2. Exposure to daylight and nature: Outdoor spaces that include plenty of natural light, plants, and low-growing shrubbery are inviting without disrupting visibility, and increase a sense of independence and calm in patients. Additionally, including moveable outdoor furniture helps patients feel as if they have more control over their environment.

3. Private and shared rooms: A combination of private and/or shared rooms should be considered to support individual patient needs. For example, some patients require more privacy than others. For them, a roommate might be detrimental to their emotional well-being and treatment progress. Other patients enjoy and can benefit from having a roommate to communicate with on a daily basis.

4. Artwork: Images of nature bring the outdoors inside. Soft-color artwork has proven to positively impact patient behavior and mental health more than bold patterns, which may increase patient anxiety. Additionally, providing opportunities for patients to personalize their rooms with art and other personal effects supports connections to family and friends.

5. Texture: A mix of comfortable furniture fabrics and finishes make spaces feel more dynamic and detailed, which can help progressively soothe long-term patients. Spaces that are too simple or clinical won’t feel as comforting. Other details, such as a mix of hardwood floors, marble, and stone can add visual interest to the space. Balance visual interest with an uncluttered feel in rooms to help support neatness and order.

6. Acoustics: Incorporating soft furnishings and artwork also promotes better acoustics. When the sound in the room is muffled by soft materials, the space feels more intimate and makes it easier for patients to hold conversations.

7. Natural light: Floor-to-ceiling windows can bathe common rooms in natural light, which promotes good mental health. In facilities where security is an issue, natural light can come through artistically-designed window slits and skylights, or from color-calibrated artificial lighting that mimics natural light or backlit natural scene murals. For patients who experience sleep disturbances such as seasonal affective disorder, providing higher intensity lighting can help combat associated depression.

8. Physical safety: Ensure a safe environment by minimizing sharp objects, rounding corners, and limiting chances for patients to harm themselves.

9. Home Type design: For decades , mental health institutions , designed for patient s who a r e in dang e r of s elf-harm, have prioritized safety over comfort.

DESIGN OBJECTIVES

-to Ensure both quality and quantity of light are provided, suitable for each space’s purpose
-to Consider touch and sound when designing, not just sight
-to Involve aromatic multicolored plants , water, and wildlife wherever possible
-to Use the aesthetics of design to create visual interest and joy
-to Use color selectively to support mood
-to Encourage building users to be active
-to Provide calm spaces for escape and relaxation
-to Create a sense of home
-to provide an automotive, innovative design by the use of smart materials

Project description

The psychiatric facility is a rehabilitation center focusing on physical, emotional and psychological recovery of patients. The core of the healing center is its connection to nature and biophilic design. Biophilic design focuses on the aspects of nature and its healing effects on a person physically and emotionally.

This building has qualities of a hospital or a long stay clinic. The spatial layout of this facility is meant to be welcoming and give a sense of comfort to its users.

For decades, mental health institutions, designed for patients who are in danger of self-harm, have prioritized safety over comfort2.
Such buildings, brimful of security locks and windowless rooms, focus on keeping patients as safe and distanced as possible. Often, patients are crowded in common rooms during the day and placed in isolated dorms at night. Although many of these facilities strive to make patients feel as if they are in the comfort of their own homes, their limiting architectural and design components compounded by a lack of nature only make patients feel increasingly secluded.

Technical information

SMART MATERIALS:

PLDC Glass
Solar Street Light
Acoustic Panels

Documentation

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