ThedaCare Medical Center - Fond du Lac

Enhanced Access to Care

To address the growing need for care access throughout the region, Froedtert ThedaCare asked HGA to plan and design two community-based hospitals in Oshkosh and Fond du Lac to bring essential services closer to patients and families. HGA created a shared design language rooted in both organizations’ heritage while establishing a unified identity. The team developed a repeatable prototype with a small footprint and rapid delivery, bringing core services closer to patients and neighborhoods.

The Fond du Lac health campus is a single-story, 25,000-SF facility with a 10-bed community hospital and 8-bed emergency department. A universal patient room model allows spaces to adapt between emergency and inpatient use based on daily demand, supported by imaging services including X-ray and CT. Emergency care is available 24/7, strengthening access for the growing Fond du Lac community. The structural design anticipates future vertical and horizontal expansion and a planned 25,000-SF clinic phase.

Environmental stewardship is advanced through a closed-loop geothermal system supported in part by Federal Tax Incentives. Fluid circulates through a vertical heat exchanger borefield beneath the visitor parking lot, connecting to heat recovery chillers that provide heating and cooling and domestic hot water via heat pump water heaters. This approach reduces energy use and reliance on natural gas, and supports smaller mechanical rooms, quieter operation, and fewer exterior components compared to conventional systems.

The Fond du Lac community-based hospital demonstrates how a health system can deliver accessible, flexible, and sustainable care at the neighborhood level, with future phases ready to grow alongside the community.