Case Study

Almoosa Specialist Hospital Bed Tower Expansion Majestic Saudi Arabian Hospital Tower Is Beacon of Health Care Excellence

Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia

The Challenge

Almoosa Specialist Hospital’s has a mission to provide the Al-Ahsa community and the Saudi Arabia Eastern region with world-class health care and patient experience, a mission since Almoosa became Al-Ahsa’s first private hospital in 1996.

With 240 beds, ambulatory care and specialist clinics, Almoosa remains one of the largest hospitals in the region. Almoosa focuses on patient-centered care, with highly qualified medical, technical and administrative staff using the latest equipment to keep pace with high expectations of visitors from all regions of the Kingdom and neighboring Gulf Region.

HKS was challenged to design an addition that would double the hospital’s size and depict the highest level of specialist care for the region.  This exceptional specialist hospital would integrate community context and culture, all on a tight urban site.

The Design Solution

The 699,654-square-foot (65,000-square-meter), 220-bed north tower expansion houses centers of excellence for:  cardiology, oncology, neuroscience, orthopedics, surgery, burn and intensive care. The facility features the latest technologies including:  a hybrid OR, cath lab, clean room pharmacy, large clinic lab, linear accelerator and invasive/noninvasive cardiac diagnostics. Other amenities include health and wellness medical retail, oncology radiation therapy, a 500-car parking deck, simulation training lab and teaching auditorium. Programming, Planning and Design were developed concurrently to streamline the process effectively.

The building embraces Al-Ahsa community and Almoosa brand.  Public spaces on the ground level unfold even before entering the building.  A three-story high glass façade graciously welcomes visitors into the building.  The ground level hosts food, retail and respite spaces, reinforcing a sense of hospitality and reducing anxiety upon arrival.

Interior Design places emphasis on intuitive wayfinding.  Apparent upon arrival are the information desk and wood clad elevators, easily recognized as visitors move through the building.  For those seeking respite, private seating near a serene curtain of water sets lobby backdrop and daylight filters through a tall wood screening wall along the building’s glass façade, creating comfortable spaces inspired by nature.

Almoosa’s emblem, the local Sidra tree, is a symbol of life and nurturing care for patients, visitors and the local community. Influences of the Sidra tree are found in the building’s gentle curving façade and throughout the interior architecture. An art glass Sidra tree greets visitors upon arrival and again in tryptic art glass panels at clinic reception areas.  Protective tree canopies inspired punched metal ceilings create dappled light at public elevator vestibules and reappear at patient room headwalls. In waiting areas and in patient rooms, features referencing nature continue to soothe anxiety and reinforce the Almoosa brand.

The Design Impact

The 17-story medical tower is the tallest hospital in Al-Ahsa and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Its majesty is seen for miles and the gleaming structure portrays the level of care within, representing a beacon of hope for health care and wellness for the community. The podium conforms to the street level facades are in character with the neighborhood and in contemporary style.

Almoosa remains a leading teaching hospital.  State-of-the-art auditorium spaces and simulation teaching rooms fuel future generations of medical excellence in the Al-Ahsa region. Additional gestures of hospitality are visible in the top-level restaurant overlooking all of Al-Ahsa, the only accommodation of its kind in the region.

Project Features

  • 699,654-square-feet (65,000-square-meters)
  • 220 beds
  • Radiation therapy
  • Hybrid OR
  • Invasive/noninvasive cardiac diagnostics
  • 500-car parking deck
  • Auditorium
  • Teaching Simulation Lab
  • LEED Gold certified

Awards

  • 2023 Health Centre of the Year, FRAME Awards