NEW UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL - ÅRHUS

Creating the best hospital is not only a question of functionality and architecture. The shape of the physical surroundings was also to the fore in this competition.

The VLA entry for the design of the buildings is based on the idea that the physical setting itself has a vital impact on the healing pathway. The hospital must therefore be laid out so that its shape supports patient dignity and integrity. Domestic interiors and art show that human values are weighted rather than hospital technology. The hospital must provide private rooms and opportunities for social activities: family rooms, libraries, kitchens, gyms and conservatories, for example. Space and facilities must be created to enable families to sleep on site. Healing gardens, fountains, aquariums, etc. link patients, families and staff to the relaxing, healing, and meditative aspects of nature. It is just as important to have healing environment to the staff as it is to the patients. Doctors, nurses and everybody else who works there are very much affected by their physical working environment.

The proposal is dense and flexible in shape. This achieves a concentrated hospital with short walking distances but also the preservation and accentuation of the features of the beautiful, gently undulating landscape.