Hospital construction is a challenging and tough preposition. A healthcare facility has many extra requirements as compared to a residential or commercial building. Hospital construction is complex because of the numerous regulations, safety requirements and legal constraints that go with it. There are several aspects unique to hospital construction like space planning for massive medical equipment, air purification, biohazard waste disposal etc. which are not a part of construction of any other premises. Hence, it is no surprise that hospital construction can take longer and be costlier than normal construction. 

Equip yourself with a roadmap so that you do not get confused and lose your way in this task. Read on.  

Phase 1  

Pre-construction planning  

-If you plan well, half the battle is won in hospital construction.

-Before a single brick is laid or a single worker arrives at your site, you have to ensure that every stage of your project is planned’.  

-Pre-construction planning will include several aspects 

A. Task masterplan  

A masterplan for the hospital construction which will include, construction schedules, scheduling, delivery deadlines, crew recruitment will have to be planned to the T. 

B. Needs assessment  

A needs assessment analysis which will give an estimate of the size of the site, height of building, number of floors, number of rooms, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems etc. will have to be erected.  

C. Schematic Design 

-A schematic design will give the first overview of how will be developed.

-This stage in hospital construction will involve development of blueprints by  the architects, the construction engineers, and the design experts.

-A 3;D model of a virtual programme of the  floor plans, site plan, elevation details and other technicalities will be included.  

D. Construction cost planning 

Hospital construction involves mammoth costs.

Your team will have to make a list of these costs and plan your funding in accordance to it. 

Some fixed costs will be 

• Cost of construction materials 
• Cost of shipping and transport of materials 
• Cost of equipment and machinery required for construction 
• Labour wages 
• Site preparation charges 
• Insurance costs of workers 

There will be multitude of indirect costs to be factored in too.  

This pre-construction plan will equip you with a battle strategy to travel safely on the rough road with twists and turns ahead.  

Phase 2 

Concept Design plan 

If the schematic design gets approved, it is elaborated and foot-wise and room-wise specifications are expounded. Every inch of your future hospital gets designed on paper including patient rooms, reception centre, operation units, corridors, waiting areas, lobbies, nurse stations, consulting rooms, lobbies etc. with nitty gritty details like light and electricity provisions, furniture positioning, décor etc.  

Building permits 

After schematic design has been approved, an application for building permits is made.  

Phase 3 Actual construction 

At this stage, hospital construction actually begins.   

-A project manager who will coordinate with and synergize the ideas and efforts of architects, electricians, plumbers, construction workers and interior designers must be appointed.

-This professional will serve as an interdisciplinary coordinator for easy flow of information between different functions.  

-How to navigate through these 3 phases with confidence 

1. 4 Cs Coordinate, collaborate cooperate and communicate  

-An entire team of people including hospital architects, administrators, construction contractors and interior designers, plumbers, carpenters, crane technicians, engineers have to work in tandem to make your dream hospital a reality.

-Provide plenty of opportunities for your whole team to bond and work as one for the completion of your venture.  

2. Brainstorm with your team 

-Periodic interactive sessions and discussions must be held to re-evaluate project milestones, identify and mitigate risks and improve performance proficiencies.

-Give them freedom to voice their opinion if they feel something is amiss. Interdisciplinary exchange of ideas can lead to a great outcome.  

3. Consult an expert 

-Invite an external expert to assess your progress and give unprejudiced opinion about your progress. 

-Conduct a third-party audit for performance appraisals, cost analysis and quality monitoring at every stage.  

4. Keep an eye on regulatory compliance 

-For a healthcare facility to be operational, it should stringently adhere to the rules set by the National Building  Code.

-Your team of experts must study these stipulations carefully and design your hospital construction with no compromise to these.

-Compliance must be a priority for each member of your construction staff in order to successfully implement the project.

-Hospitals have to be either NABH or JCI compliant. 

5. Remember the Special features Hospitals house heavy machinery and medical equipment and have unique construction needs.

5. E.g. The floors will be reinforced to be able to withstand vibration and weight of heavy machinery like MRI machines and the walls will be sound proofed to lessen sound. Radiation departments will have to be specifically designed so that the radiation does not harm people or the environment. Specialized electrical, plumbing, water supply, waste disposal needs may be there too.  

6. Harness technology 

-Digitalize your construction planning. Virtual designing can help you get a life-like feel for you to review how your hospital will look after construction.

-Ensure that your virtual design includes furniture placement, equipment positioning etc. so that you can get an accurate glimpse and feel of your future hospital.   

 -Digitalize cost assessment too. In earlier days, project costs had to manually calculated, in today’s times, there are software programmes that can accurately predict stage-wise costs and periodically review your project to ensure that it is on track,  

If reading about the construction groundwork is making you worried…delegate this tedious task to a hospital consultancy firm like Hospertz, We can lighten your burden and take care of these tasks for you from start to finish so that you will have time to do what you love the best, namely taking care of patients.  

Blog has been written by Dr. Vishal Jadhav, a veteran in the field of hospital consultancy with a rich experience of more than 20 years and founder of the Healthcare Consultancy Firm, Hospertz.

Dr. Vishal Jadhav, Director

Linkedin: Dr Vishal Jadhav
hospertz@gmail.com
+91 9867712705/ 9820833149