New Hospital Built Using Green Principles

By Ed Martinez

October 25, 2009

A new beautifully designed and state-of-the-art hospital will not only provide top critical care for cancer-stricken patients, but will exceed energy and environmental ratings.

The Shands Cancer Hospital at the University of Florida is energy self-sufficient, providing uninterrupted power independent of the city’s energy grid—regardless of a prolonged outage elsewhere in the community. It can efficiently convert clean fuel into electricity, which will provide 46 percent savings when compared with traditional fossil fuels.

"We used insulated windows that are treated to reduce solar glare and white rooftops designed to reflect heat," said Brad Pollitt, Shands HealthCare vice president for facilities. The hospital’s air-conditioning heat wheels help to recover lost energy, and irrigation and drainage systems use reclaimed water. The facility also provides showers for employees who bike to work and offer special parking for hybrid vehicles.

Because of the hospital’s decision to use environmentally sustainable construction methods, Shands Healthcare has earned the silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design designation per the U.S. Green Building Council Rating system.

The $388-million, 500,000-square-foot hospital also includes 12 high-tech operating rooms designed to accommodate anticipated evolutions in robotics, and 3-D imaging. A full-spectrum radiology department features the Aquilion ONE 320-detector row CT scanner, known as the “crown jewel” of imaging. The $2.5 million diagnostic tool helps physicians diagnose cancer, and it can detect stroke and heart disease in minutes. "Every planning and design decision we made as a team was centered on patient comfort and ease for hospital staff in providing safe and healing care," said Laura Stillman, principal-in-charge/project director at Flad Architects.

The Shands Cancer Hospital opens in November. Its completion highlights the commitment to building a healing environment for the growing needs of cancer patients. It also showcases environmental stewardship, which is becoming an integral part of design and construction practices.