Gandel Wing, Cabrini Malvern

The new acute clinical services building, The Gandel Wing, reinforces the importance Cabrini Health plays in the local community, positioning the organisation as a future focused market leader in human-centred healthcare. The Gandel Wing combines state-of-the-art facilities with a nurturing and human centric environment. The new wing rises seven-storeys with three levels of basement carparking, a radiotherapy bunker, and 152 beds. At the heart of the design is the deinstitutionalisation of a typical clinical hospital space into a more welcoming and human-centric environment. The design utilises salutogenic principles with a focus on creating spaces in partnership with nature and technology, encouraging healing rather than simply treating disease. The team were provided with information that the average age of patients was older than elsewhere in Australia. The team therefore approached every aspect of the design through the lens of the patient to ensure new levels of dignity, comfort, safety and amenity. The designs were formed with medical considerations in mind to ensure each room and facility successfully functioned from both a medical and aesthetic perspective. In order to achieve this the design team worked directly with medical teams, creating mock-ups of clinical and medical workspaces and ensuring medical necessities were not spared in the motivation for outstanding design. The design approach began with improving the patient experience. Salutogenic principles provided a touchstone, with research demonstrating that patient access to the natural world improves wellbeing. The layout invites light into the treatment spaces with views at the end of every corridor, and floor to ceiling external glass in rooms. Furnishings and fittings have been selected to be clinically functional and aesthetically beautiful. Patients are encouraged to control their own environment, with rooms incorporating ample daylight and operable windows for ventilation. The use of i-glass technology allows for better control of personal privacy, whilst maintaining the highest levels of infection control. Internal research revealed patient falls most often occurred between the bed and ensuite. As a result, each room is designed with a direct sightline from the bed to bathroom. This is coupled with sensor activated illuminated handrails and indirect pelmet lighting which reduces ambiguity at night and increases safety. Rooms are designed to feel more like hotel rooms than traditional hospital rooms. Bespoke joinery has been designed to conceal the visual effect of medical equipment and is coupled with a natural-inspired palette to create a warm and tranquil ambience.