In the complex endeavor of building or renovating healthcare facilities, hospital administrators and staff benefit from working with experienced designers and construction professionals who can guide them through what may be a once-in-a-lifetime process.

Recently Norix was part of such a team when Mercy Hospital in Miami, FL decided to reopen a disused behavioral health unit inside of the busy 437-bed full-service hospital and transform it into a therapeutic environment. Mercy had operated an in-patient behavioral health unit in the hospital from 1967 to 2008, at which time unit closed. In 2011, due to increasing demand in the community for residential mental health services, Mercy embarked on a complete renovation of the hospital-within-a-hospital. The new unit was to be a 32-bed adult and geriatric acute care facility which could treat a wide range of behavioral health diagnoses, including co-occurring disorders.

therapeutic environment case studyFollowing the successful completion of the hospital renovation and the re-opening of the unit in March of this year, Norix published a case study which describes important aspects of the design and furniture selection process at the facility. The case study identifies key members of the design team and Mercy Hospital staff involved in the project. Even though Mercy Hospital is part of the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), headquartered in Nashville, design and purchasing decisions were made at the local level by Mercy’s Director of Behavioral Health Services, Dolores Alvarez-Rivero, and her team.

norix attenda bedsThe case study illustrates the close, hands-on involvement of the furniture dealer throughout the renovation process – from early design drawings and selecting color palettes, to orchestrating delivery and completing the furniture and fixture installation. It also describes the synergy between the dealer and Norix product consultants to advise hospital staff about the safety and performance features they should consider.

The study provides a list of furniture selected for the facility, along with descriptions, images, and product data, as well as photographs of the completed facility which overlooks Miami’s picturesque Biscayne Bay. You can download a copy (pdf), of the Mercy Hospital Behavioral Healthcare Case Study from Norix and see how the facility turned into a therapeutic environment for patients.

Please share this with others and obtain your free copy of the case study here.