Orléans Health Hub is Ottawa’s newest healthcare facility

The Orléans Health Hub is a new hospital in Ottawa, Ontario that was born from a desire to create a community-oriented place of care centered in health and sustained wellness. The 90,000-sf project is a first-of-its-kind delivery model that brings together seven distinct healthcare and community organizations under one roof for an accessible and integrated hub of outpatient services and care.

This “one-stop shop for health” makes coordination of services among care providers more efficient while also improving accessibility to care for Ottawa East, especially for those with multiple chronic diseases. The Hub serves as the new model of care, providing community outreach, support programs, and retail options all within the message of sustainable health and wellness.

Orleans health hub lobby

A main goal of the project was to provide primary and secondary healthcare in the province that reconnects, regenerates, and redevelops a deeper relationship to the natural realm. The natural landscape of nearby Petrie Island informed the design approach to the development of an internal spine as a primary organizational elements for the Hub.

Orleans health hub parking entry

A system of trails connects to a nearby neighborhood and invites patients and the community to enjoy outdoor recreation. The reintroduction of long grass meadows and native plants help to re-naturalize the landscape. Additionally, the Hub features exterior wood cladding, structural mass timber, crafted wood corridors, and a living green wall

Opportunities for exchanges between partnering organizations at all levels were created within the planning process to maximize diversity of thought and to create an opportunity to learn from each other’s perspectives. A comprehensive service delivery model sets a new standard for delivery or care outside the traditional hospital setting.

Orleans health hub structural mass timber

Orleans health hub gym

Rural hospitals present unique opportunities and challenges for healthcare facility operators. Oftentimes, the infrastructure and building systems have not been updated for years and require significant improvements in order to meet today’s modern medical demands. Additionally, as these smaller, more remote hospitals are acquired by larger regional and national healthcare systems, the first step by new ownership is often to update and rehabilitate the building. But how can this be done thoughtfully, economically, and efficiently in ways that allow the engineering and facility staff to adapt to the changes? And how can the updates accurately reflect the specific needs of rural communities and the afflictions with which these areas most commonly face?