Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center delivers world-class care centered on the patient experience.
Located in a beautiful, park-like setting, the Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center is an oasis of calm providing restful spaces that support the healing process. As one of the world’s only hospitals dedicated exclusively to orthopaedic, musculoskeletal and reconstructive care, the $100 million, 165,000-square-foot facility supports Crystal Clinic’s vision to serve as a national destination for specialized care. With 12 operating rooms and 60 private patient rooms across three floors, the hospital offers orthopaedic surgery, reconstructive/plastic surgery and inpatient post-surgical care, as well as physical therapy and diagnostic radiology imaging services. It also includes a QuickCare facility to provide immediate, specialized walk-in urgent care for sports and orthopaedic injuries.
“This project is a culmination of years of planning to create a state-of-the-art hospital that combines the most advanced surgical technologies in a soothing and restful environment that promotes healing and enhances patient experience,” said Holli Cholley, R.N., BSN, M.B.A., Chief Nursing and Operations Officer. “We are setting new standards in healthcare environmental design and leading-edge technologies, so we can continue to deliver our nationally recognized surgical outcomes in a hospital that reflects this highest level of care.”
HGA, in partnership with IKM and Turner Construction, achieved Crystal Clinic’s goals through a collaborative, design-forward process. The team focused on designing an efficient, but welcoming, comfortable environment. Using Lean process improvement strategies, the team examined everyday activities to eliminate waste, and create efficiencies such as minimize wait times for patients, require less steps for staff and improve circulation for all building users, and as a result improve outcomes creating the best overall experience for patients and caregivers alike.
“From the outset, we drew inspiration primarily from hospitality environments rather than healthcare environments,” said Jes Skaug, Lead Project Designer with HGA. “Everything is designed around the patient. Since patients primarily are choosing elective surgery and staying short-term, we wanted to avoid an institutional feel and instead choose materials and design elements that are more common in a resort setting.”
That approach informed design decisions throughout the project, from space planning and scale choices to the color palette and material selection. It is experienced by the way patients can find and approach the building, enter, and be welcomed by the staff. The human scale of the building creates an immediate sense of comfort, and on upon entering there is a logical sequence for patients, supported by hotel-like lounges positioned next to windows with views to nature outside and a sophisticated, warm color palette.
Taking advantage of visibility from the parkway the main entry is dynamic, combining glass that is quite reflective with deep inset windows to create a sculptural effect. Although the structure is sizeable, it is designed to feel approachable with textured brick and glass and park-like landscaping that invites people to explore.
Upon entering the building there is sense of openness and the introduction of material choices that recall a boutique hotel. “Throughout this simple yet elegant building and interior environments, there is a sense of connectivity enhanced through natural daylight, supplemented decorative pendants, warm hues, and conformable furnishings, elevating a spatial and architectural experience that truly evokes a destination resort aesthetic,” said Amanda Pirlot, NCIDQ, LEED AP BD+C, EDAC, CHID, Lead Interior Designer with HGA.
Waiting areas are partially obscured by a series of angled privacy walls and take advantage of a two-story lounge with soft seating, bar-style high-top counters and low-set tables and warm colors to invite people in. An adjacent café and small dining area, open to a landscaped outdoor lounge.
The first floor also includes clinical areas for pre-admission testing and the QuickCare Clinic. Supporting an efficiency, exam rooms use sliding barn doors to maximizes usable space, while shared technology resources include a general x-ray room, ultrasound, a CT room, and procedure room. To create a calming atmosphere, a dedicated MRI room has an illuminated ceiling with a nature-themed design, while multicolored, indirect LED lighting is concealed along the room’s perimeter.
On the second floor there is a pre-op waiting area with a walkout balcony showcasing views of surrounding trees, a nearby pond and the patio below. From the waiting area, patients are transitioned into a series of pre-op rooms arranged in pods of five, with five rooms per corridor and support functions situated in the middle. The 12 operating rooms are in a U-shape around a central sterile processing unit to support efficiency. The ORs are equipped with advanced technologies such as a Stryker robotic surgical arm for knee and hip replacements, plus ExactechGPS computerized navigation for joint replacement surgery to support surgery and post-surgical outcomes.
The top floor houses patient rooms continue the hospitality influence with muted color palettes, smart TVs and private, tiled bathrooms with anti-slip flooring. Each room contains a closet with a safe for personal belongings, as well as a couch that can be converted into a bed for patients’ guests. All rooms include large windows to highlight views. For those on the perimeter of the building there are views of the hospital’s landscaped, tree-lined grounds, while interior rooms surround a central courtyard with a live roof, including Japanese maple trees and annual flowers. In addition to views of nature, many rooms feature framed photographs of nature scenes taken by one of Crystal Clinic’s doctors.
Located near the patient rooms are physical therapy facilities, including a set of stairs, a bathtub and a mock automobile that can be set at different heights to emulate cars, SUVs and trucks. Also supporting Crystal Clinic’s goal of getting patients back to everyday activities after surgery, quickly and safely are built-in benches are along corridors for patients to use as they start to move after surgery.
Community involvement was integral to the design process, down to the artwork. Collaborations with local artists are featured in both the public and patient realms, highlighting the talents of individual artists and their connection to the community.
“The opening of this new hospital represents a significant milestone for Crystal Clinic as the largest construction project in our history,” said Dan Ferry, M.B.A, President and Chief Executive Officer. “The hospital’s patient-centered design, along with the expertise of our skilled surgeons and the outstanding clinical care of our dedicated staff of healthcare professionals, will ensure we continue to provide exceptional surgical outcomes and a patient experience that is second to none.”
Project Team
HGA (Design Architect, Structural, MEP)
IKM Inc. (Architect of Record)
Turner Construction (General Contractor)
Somerset (Owner’s Rep)
Environmental Design Group (Civil & Landscape)
About HGA
HGA is a national interdisciplinary design firm committed to making a positive, lasting impact for our clients and communities through research-based, holistic solutions. We believe that great design requires a sense of curiosity—forming deep insight into our clients, their contexts, and the human condition. We are a collective of over 800 architects, engineers, interior designers, planners, researchers, and strategists. Our practice spans multiple markets, including corporate, cultural, education, local and federal government, healthcare, and science and technology. Visit HGA.com or follow on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
About Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center
Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center is a physician-owned, orthopaedic specialty hospital system with board-certified and fellowship-trained surgeons who perform more than 17,000 surgeries each year. With locations throughout Northeast Ohio, Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center is the only hospital in Ohio, and one of just 13 out of the more than 6,000 hospitals in the nation, to earn prestigious Joint Commission Certifications in total hip, total knee, total shoulder, and spinal fusion procedures. The hospital is ranked #1 in Ohio and in the top 20 of the more than 6,000 U.S. hospitals for Major Orthopaedic Surgery (#17) and Joint Replacement Surgery (#13) by CareChex/Quantros Analytics. Crystal Clinic has also earned a Five-Star Rating in Overall Quality from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services—its highest rating. Crystal Clinic Plastic Surgeons, a division of Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center, are experts in treating soft tissue defects related to orthopaedic injuries and provide the entire spectrum of plastic surgery – from reconstruction to cosmetic procedures.