ID-LAB’s role in Australia’s healthcare future
The Central Atrium view at the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre (VCCC) acts as the centre piece of our simple and functional wayfinding strategy. Image credit Peter Bennetts.
PPPs (or public private partnerships) are nothing new in Australia. They’ve been around for 30 years and ID-LAB has been on plenty of them.
In fact, we worked for the winning team on E.V.E.R.Y. hospital PPP we participated in. There could be many reasons for this, but we like to think this is the main one: health departments and hospitals around Australia know the work we’ve done and want more of it.
Our work on previous high-profile projects (such as the VCCC, Liverpool Hospital, Bendigo Hospital, Royal Adelaide Hospital and Royal Children’s Hospital) has set us a rung above the rest when it comes to developing intuitive wayfinding in healthcare environments. We’re currently working on two hospitals in Victoria (the new Footscray Hospital and the Frankston Hospital redevelopment) and there are many more to come.
We like working on PPPs. Different from some of the other delivery models, the PPP design team is pushed by ProjectCo to ‘Make-It-Work’. And although that really should be the objective of every project, the PPP ProjectCo know that if the wayfinding does not work, they will have to solve the problems themselves. There is no hiding in a PPP project. Every mistake in the wayfinding system will come to light during the operation of the hospital, and, on the other hand, our thorough strategy and integrated design make wayfinding simple. Beautifully simple.
Throughout the RAH, we developed a wayfinding system using visual cues from the environment.
The need for people-focused PPPs
Our healthcare system isn’t only experiencing capacity issues; it is also under ongoing pressure to increase the quality and efficiency of care, and the interconnectivity of its systems and networks. This need for more agile and user-focused care is also changing the way PPPs are constructed and tendered.
Earlier model PPPs primarily focused on building and replacing critical infrastructure. The next step towards integration will include more than the physical structures. It will have to include new ways to gather and use data, join pivotal systems and networks, and provide care across the continuum of hospital needs, including allied and mental health. Looking ahead, future healthcare systems will need to be able to utilise technology to enhance delivery. They also need to prioritise the user experience across all hospital sectors to improve the overall quality of care provided.
As we see it, future PPPs will need to focus more on people, not just on the buildings they work and receive treatment in. That’s where we and other creatives come in.
The wayfinding at Bendigo Hospital enhances the natural surroundings of the region to help create a psychological connection with both patients and visitors.
Frankston Hospital Redevelopment
Delivered as a PPP with LendLease Exemplar consortium for Peninsula Health, ID-LAB is tasked with ensuring the Frankston Hospital Redevelopment blends seamlessly into the existing structure, and the wayfinding is adaptable to account for future updates, facility changes and a range of visitor and patient needs.
The redevelopment will completely transform hospital services for the region. Expected for completion in 2025, the project will deliver a new 12-storey clinical services tower and main entrance, 130 additional beds, new spaces for mental health and oncology services and a state-of-the-art theatre suite. The new facility will integrate with the existing hospital to deliver exemplary built form, technology and sustainability outcomes.
New Footscray Hospital
The new Footscray Hospital is the largest ever healthcare infrastructure investment in Victoria’s history. ID-LAB has been engaged to ensure integration of wayfinding cues into the fabric of the building itself, both in the architecture and the interior design. From the user research phase through to concept and design development, design disciplines have been expertly applied to ensure all elements support the user journey and foster inclusivity.
Totaling $1.5 billion, the new Footscray Hospital will provide Melbourne’s booming western suburbs with greater access to care closer to home. The project aims to reduce wait times across the emergency department, elective surgery and outpatient clinic services, and provide better overall patient outcomes in the face of increasing capacity demands. Delivered by the Victorian Health Building Authority (VHBA) as a PPP under the Partnerships Victoria framework with Western Health, Plenary Health consortium and Victoria University, the hospital is expected to open in 2025.
PPPs and greater public health
We’ve only scratched the surface of the work we’re completing in the hospital sector, and we expect much more to come through. The reason for this is quite simple: the public sector cannot realise the full public good of healthcare facilities on its own. Investment in hospitals is on the rise around Australia. In 2019-20 alone, an astronomical $83 billion was spent on Australia’s public and private hospitals. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated, even more investment will be needed to ensure our battered healthcare system can withstand the pressure of still unforeseen pressures.
To meet wider expectations of a world-class healthcare system, the public sector needs the innovation, skill and expertise of the private sector and the creatives within it. Engaging the private sector on these projects also means more opportunity for creative problem-solving, innovation and future-proofing of solutions – all things we’re proud to stand for at ID-LAB.