New medical center reflects trend of converting existing space

PHOTO BY WARREN PATTERSON PHOTOGRAPHY The new Winchester Hospital medical and outpatient center is located in a former office building that was converted for patient care services.

New medical center reflects trend of converting existing space Winchester (Mass.) Hospital worked with a team of developers, architects and contractors to convert and renovate a dated Woburn, Mass., office building into a modern medical office and outpatient facility.

National Development, a leading New England real estate development and investment firm, selected Boston architectural firm Margulies Perruzzi Architects (MPA) to upgrade and retrofit a former 80,000-square-foot office building into a patient-focused medical office building.

Additionally, MPA provided interior architecture and health care design services for Winchester Hospital Outpatient Center, which occupies half of the facility. The design firm's prior health care design experience was a key factor in it being chosen for the project.
"MPA's health care design expertise really informed this project, ensuring that the design of patient and clinical areas would meet our goals for the new space," says Robby Robertson, vice president of facilities and real estate, Winchester Hospital.

"As our firm explored the possibility of converting this older office building into a state-of-the-art medical office facility, we knew that having the right design team on board from the beginning would be critical to our success," says Andrew Gallinaro, director of acquisitions and asset management, National Development.

The four-story building received upgrades to the lobby, common and tenant areas, including new finishes, lighting and electrical service. New mechanical systems were specifically designed for medical use, and a stretcher-sized elevator was installed.

The ground floor offers an entrance with sliding doors for easy access, a concierge station in the lobby to direct visitors, a central registration area and an outpatient lab.

Once the building upgrade was completed, MPA designed a 38,000-square-foot tenant fit-out for the outpatient center. The firm designed patient and clinical areas for the project, incorporating Lean design strategies to outline complex patient flows and develop a solution to minimize travel and patient wait times.

MPA also utilized the Six Sigma DMADV design methodology [Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify] to understand Winchester Hospital's former processes and to develop future solutions.

The firm incorporated evidence-based design strategies by using existing treatment rooms as mock-up spaces to test design solutions. This process helped the clinical staff to envision the finished project in lieu of viewing plans.

Included in the new outpatient center are the Winchester Hospital Breast Care Center; the Center for Healthy Living; imaging services, including MRI, CT, ultrasound, X-ray and fluoroscopy; and a laboratory.

For the Breast Care Center, MPA collaborated with a host of stakeholders, including doctors, nurses, administrators and others, to design a comfortable and attractive space that also features state-of-the-art clinical services and technology.

The Breast Care Center provides comprehensive multidisciplinary breast health care delivery, integrating education, prevention, risk identification, diagnosis, treatment and emotional support.

Cranshaw Construction, Newton, Mass., served as the general contractor; AGA Consulting Engineers, Hudson, Mass., provided mechanical and electrical consulting services; and Goldstein-Milano, Reading, Mass., delivered structural engineering services.