Hospitals May Have to Cut Building Costs

As far as construction in the healthcare industry, medical office buildings, much like the 10-story tower at the Intermountain Medical Center Campus in Murray, is where money will be spent.

By Kelly Lux
Real Estate News Utah

Hospitals will have to reevaluate and possibly cut out the expensive trends of patient-focused building as healthcare costs continue to rise, according to the director of facility planning and development for Intermountain Healthcare.

“Nice spaces, open spaces, almost exclusively now, everybody is saying these are probably on the hit list. And that is kind of sad,” said Steve Dibble, of Intermountain Healthcare and a licensed architect in both Utah and California. “Hospitals are going to get scrunched.”

Dibble said doctors will no longer drive the design of hospital facilities. Instead the focus will be on getting the best value, the best care and the most out of a dollar and doing what is best for the patient, he said. Savings will be found in standardized rooms and shared spaces. And, Dibble said, energy costs will be ratcheted down.

“The general idea is to hunker down, remodel what you need to, but be very careful what you build new,” Dibble said. “The idea of ‘build it and they will come’ is really no longer the case.”

As far as construction in the healthcare industry, medical office buildings, much like the 10-story tower at the Intermountain Medical Center Campus in Murray, is where money will be spent because of the number of people who will be brought on and need access to the system, Dibble said.

Hospitals are also turning to the construction of outpatient services and community hospitals, which Dibble said are the most efficient way to get healthcare to the average person. Community hospitals were recently built in Riverton and Park City and another is under construction in Tremonton, he said. The Riverton facility also has outpatient services available.

“Hospitals will have to build smaller and more efficiently, with an eye toward keeping patients out of in-patient beds,” Dibble said.

Like the Intermountain Medical Center Campus in Murray, health care services are being isolated in individual buildings for patients’ convenience. This increases patient accessibility by allowing for many patient entrances, again designing for the patient, Dibble said.

Hospitals are also trying to reduce costs by going to computer-based, digitally-based, patient records, Dibble said. Intermountain Healthcare embarked on a joint venture with General Electric to convert to an electronic system. Now Intermountain is reducing its operating costs as one of the most wired companies in the United States.

“It has really benefited us,” Dibble said. “Not only have we saved money and the patients have saved money, but the quality of healthcare has gone up.”

Essentially, the trends in healthcare facilities will focus on keeping people healthy, Dibble said. Facilities will be designed much like the outpatient Health and Performance Center in St. George where patients are taught to stay healthy. Medical office buildings will be designed and built with patients’ wellness in mind. And as the environment changes with technological advances and the publics’ general perception of healthcare, facilities will need to be designed with flexibility in mind.