HEALTH CENTERSPACE PROGRAMMING ILLUSTRATION
In this illustration, the health center being planned will house a new project. Therefore, no project-specific historical data are available to use in the planning process. The planning assumptions are based on general health care utilization, productivity and capacity characteristics. For projects that have been in operation prior to facility planning, historical data should be the first source of planning information. Centers funded through the Bureau of Community Health Services can use some of the data reported in the Uniform Data System (UDS) as planning information (e.g., the ratio of medical and dental encounters per user).
Before using historical operating data as the basis for planning a new facility, a comparison should be made with data from other sources. In some situations, utilization, productivity and/or capacity may have been constrained by some feature(s) of the existing facility. If this is found to be the case, the use of other planning data should be considered, at least when the new facility is likely to eliminate the constraints imposed by the old facility.
* Facility Planning Guideline for Ambulatory Health Centers, DHHS, PHS, HRSA, Bureau of Community Health Services. (This is the predecessor agency to the Bureau of Primary Health Care.)
Planning Assumptions
Space Programming for Basic Center Components
Medical
10,000 users x 3.5 encounters/year/user = 35,000 encounters/year.
35,000 encounters/year ÷ 2,500 encounters/year/room = 14 rooms.
A total of 14 exam/treatment rooms will be provided, with one of them large enough to accommodate minor surgery. Consultation rooms will be provided on the basis of one for every two exam/treatment room. Seven consultation rooms will be provided here. The information in Chapter III can be used to make a preliminary determination of the necessary support space in the medical area. The rooms to be included other than the exam rooms, and the amount of space in each room, are determined on a rather subjective basis. For large health centers, areas like general storage will have to be larger than the 50 square feet suggested here. The preliminary medical space program is as follows:
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Examination | 13 | 1,300 |
Treatment | 1 | 180 |
Consultation | 7 | 700 |
Nurses' Office | 1 | 80 |
Sterile Storage | 1 | 50 |
Soiled Workroom | 1 | 80 |
Reception | 1 | 100 |
Waiting Area | - | 360 |
Toilets | 2 | 60 |
General Storage | 1 | 50 |
________ | ||
MEDICAL TOTAL | 2,960 |
Dental
4,000 users x 2.5 encounters/year/user = 10,000 encounters/year
10,000 encounters/year ÷ 2,000 encounters/year/operatory = 5 operatories.
At this stage in planning there will be no differentiation made between operatories to be used by dentists and those to be used by hygienists. The preliminary space program for the dental area is as follows:
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Operatory | 5 | 500 |
X-ray, including panorex | 1 | 140 |
Darkroom | 1 | 30 |
Soiled Workroom | 1 | 30 |
Sterilizing Alcove | 1 | 30 |
Recovery Room | 1 | 60 |
Consultation | 1 | 100 |
Reception | 1 | 100 |
Waiting | - | 150 |
Toilets | 1 | 60 |
General Storage | 1 | 50 |
________ | ||
DENTAL TOTAL | 1,250 |
Note: An alternative method for relating expected utilization to medical and dental facility needs is to base the process on staff productivity. That is, the number of expected encounters is divided by anticipated provider productivity, resulting in a projected staffing level. Facilities are then planned on the basis of a certain number of rooms or operatories per provider.
Radiology
35,000 medical encounters/year x .1 x-ray procedures/medical encounter = 3,500 x-ray procedures/year.
The expected activity in x-ray at the center is much less than the capacity for a single room. One room will be provided. The preliminary space program for radiology is as follows:
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
X-ray | 1 | 220 |
Control | 1 | 30 |
Dressing Booth | 2 | 30 |
Darkroom | 1 | 100 |
Viewing | 1 | 120 |
Film Filing | 1 | 200 |
Storage | 1 | 40 |
Waiting | - | 100 |
________ | ||
RADIOLOGY TOTAL | 840 |
Laboratory and Pharmacy
The preliminary space programs for laboratory and pharmacy are based on the space figures from Chapter IV. They are as follows:
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Lab, except microbiology | 1 | 240 |
Microbiology | 1 | 80 |
Venipuncture | 1 | 30 |
Toilet | 1 | 30 |
EKG | 1 | 80 |
________ | ||
LABORATORY TOTAL | 460 |
(Note: In many centers the EKG room is included in the medical area.)
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Storage, Compounding, Dispensing |
1 | 400 |
Office/Records | 1 | 100 |
________ | ||
PHARMACY TOTAL | 500 |
Medical Records
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Office | 1 | 120 |
Interview | 2 | 160 |
Identification Plate | 1 | 80 |
Filing Area | - | 400 |
________ | ||
MEDICAL RECORDS TOTAL | 760 |
Social, Community, and Education Services
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Social Service Director | 1 | 120 |
Social Worker | 1 | 120 |
Health Educator | 1 | 120 |
Conference/Classroom | 1 | 400 |
Library | 1 | 240 |
________ | ||
RECORDS TOTAL | 1,000 |
Administration
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Executive Director | 1 | 150 |
Assistant Director | 1 | 120 |
Medical Director | 1 | 150 |
Dental Director | 1 | 150 |
Secretarial Area | 1 | 120 |
Personnel | 1 | 120 |
Purchasing | 1 | 120 |
Finance Director | 1 | 120 |
Financial Staff | 1 | 240 |
Mail and Duplicating | 1 | 180 |
Conference | 1 | 240 |
Reception and Waiting | 1 | 120 |
________ | ||
ADMINISTRATION TOTAL | 1,830 |
Staff Facilities
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Male Locker/Toilet | 1 | 200 |
Female Locker/Toilet | 1 | 200 |
Staff Dining | 1 | 180 |
________ | ||
STAFF FACILITIES TOTAL | 580 |
Public Facilities
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Lobby | 1 | 400 |
Information | 1 | 80 |
Toilets | 2 | 60 |
Pediatric Waiting (Playroom) | 1 | 180 |
Switchboard | 1 | 100 |
________ | ||
PUBLIC FACILITIES FACILITIES TOTAL | 820 |
Room | Number | Total Square Feet |
Sterilizing | 1 | 120 |
Maintenance | 1 | 180 |
General Storage | 1 | 500 |
Phone Equipment | 1 | 100 |
Janitor's Closet | 2 | 80 |
________ | ||
SUPPORT FACILITIES FACILITIES TOTAL | 980 |
Space Program Summary
Area | Square Feet |
Medical | 2,960 |
Dental | 1,250 |
Radiology | 840 |
Laboratory | 460 |
Pharmacy | 500 |
Medical Records | 760 |
Social, Community and Education | 1,000 |
Administration | 1,830 |
Staff Facilities | 580 |
Public Facilities | 820 |
Support Facilities | 980 |
TOTAL | 11,980 |
The 11,980 figure represents the number of net square feet that would be required in the new facility. In order to convert this into an estimate of the required gross square feet, a net-to-gross conversion factor must be applied. The conversion factor is discussed in Chapter X.
Total Net Square Feet | 11,980 |
Net-to-Gross Conversion Factor | 1.5 |
________ | |
Total Gross Square Feet | 17,970 |