The University of California San Francisco is about to engage in a $3 billion USD capital expansion and upgrade to their Helen Diller Medical Center on the UCSF Parnassus Campus. The anticipated project was conceptualized in a recently completed master plan developed by Perkins&Will. Perkins&Will also completed a feasibility study for the same project in August 2012. While both studies were completed by the same firm for the same project on the same site, their outcomes were dramatically different. One study took an “outside/in” look at the site and focused on constructability and overall site availability. This allowed for the organization to determine whether the proposed construction site could handle or work for a new tertiary/quaternary care bed tower with all the diagnostic and treatment services needed. The other took an "inside/out" look at the operations of the hospital. This allowed for an assessment of the existing operations which were already at capacity to determine what was actually needed to be built to support existing and growth. The decisions made early during the planning and conceptual phase have dramatic impact on the result and long term operations of the hospital and it’s system. Come hear which was correct and why. Additionally, a brief discussion about operational outcomes from a planning study for a healthcare system in Singapore will be shared as a comparative analysis. Understanding the operational needs of the organization must be at the forefront of all planning and design discussion in healthcare.
