Patient Care
Hospital Design Puts Children and Families First
New detailed plans for tower adds more family, play spaces
At first glance, it is apparent that UR Medicine’s new Golisano Children’s Hospital is designed around the common theme of supporting our patients – and their families. The most exciting features of the new building are the many spaces planned for gathering, playing, resting and finding respite.
The new $145-million tower, located on Crittenden Boulevard and attached to the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) and Strong Memorial Hospital, will be eight floors and approximately 245,000 square feet of space dedicated to children and their families. The hospital broke ground on the construction in October 2012 and is expected to open in 2015.
Not only will the building give our patients and their families private rooms, it will include a new hospitality suite that parents can use to shower, eat home-cooked meals as a family or even run a load of laundry.
“Our families are so dedicated to participating in the care of their children while they’re hospitalized that our nurses have to firmly remind them to take care of themselves, too. Having these services so close will make it easier for all our parents to stay rested and nourished,” said Nina F. Schor, William H. Eilinger Chair of Pediatrics and pediatrician-in-chief of Golisano Children's Hospital.
After children go home from Golisano Children’s Hospital, many tell us that the most memorable moments they have are from the playrooms and the playdeck, a large play space filled with natural light. The new hospital will fully embrace this need for play and normalcy with a toddler playroom and a new two-story playdeck on the seventh floor. Above that, on the eighth floor, will be a school room and a teen room that will overlook the playdeck.
The two general care floors will each include a respite lounge, allowing parents to rest in a living room-like atmosphere. These rooms will give parents a place to bond with other parents in similar situations, if they choose to.
Elizabeth R. McAnarney, M.D., professor and chair emerita of Pediatrics at URMC, said her role as co-chair of the hospital’s capital campaign has been particularly rewarding.
“This dream of a hospital built from the ground up for our region’s children and their families is becoming a reality,” she said. “We have a considerable amount to do before we can open the doors of the new children’s hospital, but the extensive plans for the new hospital allow us to all fully appreciate what we can do for children when all adults work on behalf of children’s best needs.”
For a virtual tour of the building, please visit www.givetokids.urmc.edu. For more information on how you can support the campaign, please call (585) 273-5948.
