Hospitals are trying to make the environment comfortable for the patients' families as well. They are doing away with standard waiting rooms filled with uncomfortable chairs positioned close together and creating lounges with small microenvironments.

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is one of the hospitals that's going to soon resemble a hotel. In its new facility, each patient room will be private and filled with natural light and music. Turner Construction Company is in charge of the medical center's $1.1 billion expansion project, which is the largest project in the university's history.


Englewood is also incorporating this concept into its new design. When patients enter the family birth place they will be greeted by a concierge and the lighting, color, sound and amount of family space will allow for optimal comfort. "They look for a self-contained environment, hotel and spa-like feel," said Geller.

With all of these expensive projects underway, the question arises as to how they are funded. At Englewood it's a combination of donations, a positive bottom line and short and long-term debt.

"We're very fortunate in that we have a very active culture of philanthropy here," said Geller. "But we've had a surplus from operations and a positive bottom line for the past seven years so we're able to use those funds to reinvest and we've acquired some short and long-term debt as well in order to accomplish the project."

Back to HCB News

Homepage