HIMACS plays a starring role in Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic renovation

Architecture studio PMMT, specialists in healthcare settings, renovated the emergency area at Hospital Clínic using cutting-edge materials with top hygienic qualities, such as HIMACS.

Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic, located in the city’s central Eixample district, is one of the world’s top health institutions, serving as the location for pioneering operations in Spain. Because of this, the hospital was awarded an accreditation as a “high-technology and reference hospital.”

The entire emergency area was recently renovated by the architecture studio PMMT, an ambitious and complex project. One of the main aims was to achieve more comfort and tranquility for patients by creating individual closed areas, known as Boxes, where patients can remain under observation while waiting for their medical test results.

The studio needed to create a space that was accessible, pleasant, and comfortable both for patients and their companions, as well as efficiently positioned, to facilitate the work of the medical personnel.

According to Luis Gotor, the architect behind the project, “the biggest challenge was organizing and integrating all the medical equipment into the architecture of the room itself, in order to minimize patient stress during their stay in the emergency department.” To achieve this integration, it was necessary to find a material with excellent hygienic properties, no visible seams, and great thermoformability and resistance to everyday use. HIMACS acrylic stone – a key material in the health sector – was chosen for all these reasons.

For this renovation, the architects acknowledged that the emergency room is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. So they opted for very high-quality materials, since “all the surfaces take a lot of knocks and we needed resistant materials that would stand the test of time. We chose HIMACS for all the furnishings because it fulfills all these properties, in addition to being extremely hygienic, a fundamental requirement for a hospital,” explains Gotor.

Boxes designed for patient rest

Aspects such as the privacy and welfare of patients were taken into account in the design of this new space. To achieve this, lighting installations were created that make it possible to regulate the light level depending on whether an examination is being conducted or the patient is resting.

Privacy has also been achieved thanks to the design of individual boxes, where images of landscapes have been installed over the stretchers, which help patients disconnect and relax. Moreover, the furnishings, created from HIMACS, have a smooth and pleasant feel and are integrated into the wall, hiding the medical devices and thus providing a further sense of tranquility while also still being completely accessible to health personnel.

“The choice of HIMACS acrylic stone to create the furnishings has been vital thanks to its smooth, non-porous lines, which enable different heights and elements to be integrated in a continuous and seamless way,” notes Luis Gotor. This results in increased cleanliness and hygiene, a key aspect when it comes to health services. In addition, to make the furnishings more appealing to patients, they are all in the Alpine White shade of HIMACS, in contrast to the orange used for all the emergency signage.

Spacious and modern nurses’ station

One of the areas with the highest flow of people is the nurses’ station, where there are always doctors and nurses checking reports, preparing tests and distributing medication. Architecture studio PMMT carefully considered the needs of all the health personnel to adapt the design of the space to them.

They created a diaphanous, practical, and large space, where all of the furnishings are made from LG Hausys’ acrylic stone. The curved, hollow shape of the counters, designed exclusively in LG Hausys’ acrylic stone for this project, has made it possible to take full advantage of all the space, positioning medication carts and medical devices far from the sight of patients and companions, without getting in the way of the health personnel.

The emergency department, like the other areas of the hospital, requires a high level of cleanliness and hygiene. The use of HIMACS – a material that is widely used in health establishments thanks to its hygiene certifications – was a huge advantage since its thermoformability and seamless finish meant it was possible to integrate the cupboards without leaving joins for dirt or germs. This makes the area extremely easy to clean and maintain.

The renovation at Hospital Clínic was so successful because the architects took into account the needs of the hospital’s patients and employees. The choice of HIMACS as the main material for this renovation was key in creating a space dedicated to health, where the aim is to actively collaborate in the welfare and recovery process of the patients, who should feel that they are in a peaceful, hygienic space.