Zeidler Partnership Architects is pleased to announce the Assuta Medical Center in Tel Aviv, Israel, has been shortlisted at the World Architecture Festival (WAF) 2009.Tarek El-Khatib, senior partner at Zeidler, will make a presentation of the project to a jury during the festival in Barcelona this November.
Designing an international healthcare facility requires an understanding of the particular site and the local culture in order to understand the nature of the project. The design process for the Assuta project successfully merged patient expectations with the hospital’s objectives by integrating the site, culture and medical systems. “One of the key design challenges was using the building to connect the park and the city,” says El-Khatib. “Our desire to create a connection between the welcoming healing environment on the interior and the natural beauty of the exterior site was achieved by a large glass concourse overlooking the park.” The long plan of the hospital is cut through in two places. creating a U-shaped public space for visitors, patients and staff. This pattern of the public space forms the main circulation spine of the building both horizontally and vertically.
The Assuta Medical Center’s main services are both invasive and non-invasive, diagnostic and procedural. They include, in phase one, outpatient and inpatient facilities with 16 highly innovative operating rooms, 27 intensive-care beds, 230 acute-care beds, 40 day-surgery beds, imaging, catheterlabs, radiation therapy and 25 dialysis positions. The new center will add significantly to the capacity of the existing six Assuta facilities in Israel providing state-of-the-art medical services. The design of this facility reflects the integration of technology, spiritual needs, cultural spaces, and the environment down to even the smallest details, helping to create a unique medical experience.