Designing a Heart Center

More hospitals are beginning to offer diagnosis and treatment for cardiovascular disease and open heart surgical procedures. To date, comprehensive guidelines and standards for space requirements and design of heart centers have not been established. This paper will establish design guidelines and space requirements for non-invasive cardiology suites. The paper will also outline a means to consolidate all of the needed care services (i.e., cath lab, non-invasive cardiology, open-heart surgery, and cardiac rehabilitation) to create a heart center of excellence.

The Academy Journal is published by the AIA Academy of Architecture for Health (AAH). The Journal is the official publication of the AAH and explores subjects of interest to AIA-AAH members and to others involved in the fields of healthcare architecture, planning, design and construction.