Tampere psychiatric clinic features a modern, locally rooted ambiance for patients and staff

Located on the outer edge of the Tampere University Hospital area and adjacent to a surrounding nature/outdoor area, the Tampere Psychiatric Clinic will provide 180 patient beds across various psychiatric healthcare units.

The facility will feature a flexible structural concept to support both patient healing processes and the staff’s work environment. The structure creates differing environments such as private, social, and public spaces, both indoors and outdoors. The clinic’s secluded location helps to give the building privacy as well as its own identity.

Three U-shaped care buildings face the surrounding natural environment and combine with an administration and activities building to form an enclosed shared courtyard. Here, activities, visits, and socializing can take place in a safe and secluded environment.

The three care buildings are organized so departments are in pairs, with a shared core for staff and functional purposes. The circular structure and the vertical nodes within the volume of each building create short distances and enable good communication throughout the facility.

The new clinic features an emergency unit, a psychosis unit, a crisis unit, an outpatient clinic, a somatopsychiatric unit, a neuropsychiatric unit, a mood unit, a neuromodulation units, a substance abuse unit, and a psychosis + forensic psychiatry unit. The project is slated for completion in 2020.

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?