'home during sickness' integrates intimate domestic environments within hospital facilities

re-envisioning the boundaries between private living spaces and intensive care units during hospitalization, architects yuexin yu and dessery dai introduce the ‘home during sickness’ project. the proposal presents an intermix of intimate home environments and hospital facilities, in order to avoid the separation between patients in critical condition and their close relatives. the concept has received an honorable mention award in the ‘home’ 2020 competition by architectural initiative arch out loud. 

all images courtesy of yuexin yu and dessery dai

instead of keeping the existing isolation cell layout of the ICUs, the design by yuexin yu and dessery dai turns them into the middle ground between temporary living units and the rest of the hospital facilities. this eliminates the traffic and travel time that patient families usually have to abide with, in order to be immediately present in difficult times or emergencies. in addition, patients are also able to sense the presence of home rather than acknowledging that they are secluded and monitored.

two major circulations are carefully designed for the living units, while also facilitating medical workers’ movement within the facilities. these two circulation routes are adjacent yet never overlapped, and thus clearly define the private zone that accommodates patients and visitors, from the one that is used by healthcare employees.

the proposal introduces a welcoming environment, while integrating green areas and warm materiality within the space. ‘the presence of home is absolutely crucial during difficult times of hospitalization’ the architects share. by inserting elements of domestic life during hospitalization, patients and their families are more comfortable within the hospital facilities, which otherwise seems constrained and stressful. 

project info:

name: home during sickness
architects: yuexin yu, dessery dai

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edited by: myrto katsikopoulou | designboom