UNC Rex Cancer Center: Empathy in Design

Innovative Cancer Care Design: UNC Rex Cancer Center

As UNC Rex Healthcare’s cancer treatment services expanded beyond existing medical building design capacities, leaders saw an opportunity to create a state-of-the-art outpatient cancer facility rather than simply expanding current spaces. The existing facilities were landlocked, necessitating a custom building design on a new site that would accommodate future healthcare facility growth. A key question guided the process: How will this facility adapt to advancements in cancer treatment and future expansion? To ensure decision-makers could be fully engaged in the process of developing the design for the UNC Rex Cancer Center, the BSA team utilized technology to visually show people how their input might take concrete form.

Technology-Driven Patient-Centered Design

BSA, a leading healthcare architecture firm, applied a “mapping with empathy” approach. This approached involved virtually walking different user personas (like patients and healthcare providers) through the proposed design for the new Cancer Center. Additionally, the team diagrammed the flows for each patient type. 21 different patient flow experiences were identified and our team traced their key steps. Many of these flows would be experienced by the same patient during different visits to the same facility, so the BSA team optimized the routes for efficiency and personalized care while maintaining standardized healthcare interior design and patient experience. The goal: ease of use for the patient.

The interior architecture team then used a computer-simulated model and choreographed the entire patient experience. Specific interactions tracked included:

• Patient wait times
• Staff handoffs from registration to a patient navigator to care team
• Staff utilization
• Vehicular traffic flow and valet queuing
• Parking layouts
• Other high-congestion zones

All in all, this approach provided key insights to improve the arrival experience for patients and families. Finally, the team simulated combining several stand-alone specialty cancer clinics (with separate registration) into one centralized registration process.

Optimizing Centralized Registration for Enhanced Patient Experience

What was the outcome of the model? Simulation modeling revealed that a centralized registration system for all patient types could lead to bottlenecks, which may negatively impact the patient experience. To limit the risk of backups yet still maintain a centralized registration experience, the team implemented several solutions:

1. Optimizing registration bays to minimize peak-time wait periods
2. Integrating online pre-registration and assisted kiosk check-ins for returning patients
3. Allowing specific patient populations to bypass daily registration and go directly to treatment areas, such as radiation oncology patients who visit daily during intense treatment periods

Planning for Growth with Adaptive Design

BSA, a top architecture firm, incorporated sustainable hospital design principles to ensure adaptability for future expansion. By modeling various patient volume scenarios, the team identified when the facility would reach maximum capacity and made critical custom hospital design plan refinements. Key adjustments included:

• Departmental expansion zones integrated into the initial design
• A flexible 4th-floor addition in the first phase, designed for future healthcare needs

The result? The project team viewed empathy as important as data-driven metrics and the need for a viable proforma. The project’s success stemmed from a holistic approach combining qualitative and quantitative insights. By integrating sustainable building design, leading healthcare engineering solutions, and cutting-edge healthcare construction management, the facility supports both operational efficiency and patient-centered care.

View the simulation model here.

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