Outram Community Hospital

Introduction Outram Community Hospital (OCH) is a mixed-use development with 547 beds across 7-storeys of Inpatient Wards, a 4-storey podium with Specialist Outpatient Clinics, Singapore General Hospital (SGH) Rehabilitation Centre, Radiology Department, childcare centre and a 19-storey office tower. OCH is served by two new carriageways and a 2-storey pedestrian link bridge connecting to SGH. The building sits over 4 basements occupying a larger footprint made possible by expanding underneath the new carriageways to facilitate connections and servicing to adjacent developments in Campus. It houses the Campus Logistics Hub comprising of Central Cook-Chill Kitchen, Materials Management Department, Central Sterile Supplies Unit, Pharmacy, 1000-lot carpark and an underground tunnel network system enabling logistics and vehicular connections within the Campus. Planning Strategies Optimising the site, the building is orientated to create gateway pedestrian entrances across Kampong Bahru Road, through OCH and to new Hospital Boulevard. This enhances the way-finding to key nodes such as Outram MRT station and SGH. The North wing of the podium is elevated to reveal a sheltered vehicular drop-off with all entrances designed for barrier-free accessibility incorporating contrasting floor finishes serving as wayfinding cues. The office tower anchors the south-west corner of the site with its own identity and dedicated entrances. Circulation for patient, staff, visitors and back-of-house transfers are segregated, ensuring hospital infection control and patient privacy. Natural daylighting and views to exterior at dead-end corridors enhances way-finding and helps mitigate patients’ stress. Earthly colour tones and materials create a sense of welcoming ambience. Infusion of greenery at various levels promotes visual relief and sensory healing. The 12th Storey rehabilitation roof garden is equipped with simulation pavilions and motor skills development stations to foster patient’s recovery and assimilation back into society. To future-proof for an ageing population, office spaces are built-in with infrastructure provisions for conversion to inpatient wards allowing a total bed count of 907. Environmental Sustainability & Climate Response Window openings for inpatient wards are orientated to South-West and North-East, capturing the prevailing winds. Designed with 3.0m high ceiling height supported by CFD simulations, the naturally ventilated wards have full height motorised windows on both sides for cross ventilation. Deep sun-shading platforms double-up as facade maintenance aisles. A 5-month site assessment by National University of Singapore has proven the indoor air temperature of naturally ventilated wards to be 3 to 8°C lower than outdoor air temperatures during a hot and sunny day. The wind speed reading recorded is also consistently higher. These validate the effectiveness of sun shading and cross-ventilation strategies employed. Pre-fabricated Bathroom Units (PBU) are used for all patient ensuites and Accessible toilets for better construction quality control and efficiency. Solar PV panels on Level 13 rooftop supplement the building’s electricity consumption from the grid. Overview The project is a demonstration of an approach that is patient-centric, age-friendly, flexible and sustainable. It initiates the first step and serves as a benchmark for implementation of the Outram Medical Campus Masterplan. OCH has achieved the Singapore Green Mark Platinum and Universal Design Gold Plus Awards.