HCA’s StoneSprings Hospital Center

A New Model for Efficiency

HCA initially requested a trimmed down version of its existing model for new hospitals. Knowing the layout could also be streamlined, our design team undertook an exhaustive study of opportunities to maximize efficiency, improve departmental adjacencies, and enhance internal circulation. We returned to the client with two options: an adaptation of HCA’s existing plans that offered the same amenities with 70,000 fewer square feet, and a completely redesigned standard with even greater efficiencies.

With StoneSprings’ Certificate of Need rapidly nearing expiration and a building footprint already approved by local officials, HCA moved forward with the adaptation of its existing standard while saving the total redesign for future use.

Organizing the Space

Designed and equipped for comprehensive inpatient, outpatient, surgical and diagnostic medical care, the hospital features 124 beds, 15 emergency room bays, a cardiac catheterization lab/operating room, and five diagnostic imaging rooms including MRI, CT and nuclear medicine. Intuitive wayfinding and visual connections from interior to exterior throughout the building help patients and staff navigate the building. A main public corridor serves as a spine for patients and visitors to easily reach any area they need to access, while a separate passageway for staff creates an efficient link between departments.

A Sense of Place, Establishing the Brand

StoneSprings is located along a corridor that transitions from the Colonial developments of eastern Loudoun County to the ‘horse country’ farms, Civil War trails, and historic sites of western Loudoun County. We explored a more neutral palette than what HCA was typically accustomed to and created a more contemporary hospital that pulled in the wood and stone detail of an adjacent horse pasture.

Gresham Smith’s environmental graphics team also designed a comprehensive master signage and wayfinding program that reinforces the hospital’s architectural theme, promotes the StoneSprings brand to the community, and improves durability, lifespan and return on investment.

Cost-Efficiency and Sustainability

The first tenet of being a good steward of the environment is to ‘reduce,’ which coincided with a streamlined budget. Ultimately, the reduction in square footage saved on construction costs and decreased energy and operating costs. The resulting modern look and feel is much leaner with fewer parts and pieces. We also built more economically while still focusing on a high-end look. We used paint instead of vinyl wall coverings, and in place of terrazzo tile we used porcelain arranged in a way that was still elegant.

To increase energy efficiency and combat noise from the nearby Dulles airport, Gresham Smith upgraded the windows to an ultra-thermal system, used ample brick for sound and thermal insulation, and chose thicker exterior insulation finish systems.

A Boon to the Community

In addition to providing high-quality healthcare to Loudoun County, StoneSprings Hospital Center will provide 500 new jobs and generate $2.1 million in local tax revenues for community services. The medical office building filled up so fast we had to add two more floors. The hospital prototype that we designed will make it easy for HCA to expand StoneSprings from the back and add another 124 beds once future demand requires it.