Observations on Healthcare Facilities for Cancer Interventions

Cancer has always been a silent conversation in many circles of society. A topic that is always in the minds of people, especially as one grows older and hears of more friends and acquaintances battling the disease. It does not help that we are seeing cancer cases rise in younger adults, hence keeping cancer a very relevant topic to everyone.

Having designed spaces for infusion like an oncology center and spaces to accommodate LINAC systems, I have seen firsthand the nuances for cancer care facilities. The “usual rules” (if you can call them that) such as infection control, zoning spaces properly, and having efficient connections to the rest of the healthcare system are a given, but—in addition—there are three aspects that I have observed as I designed these facilities:

Privacy of Patients

A patient with cancer is not in the most positive of emotional states. This is a given aspect of the patient that no physical architectural design interventions can fully salve. Nonetheless, architecture can mitigate some of the pain that a patient (as well as their family and the medical staff) feels during the cancer treatments. One specific aspect in which an architect can help is to preserve the dignity and privacy of the patient while they are using the cancer care spaces.

When a patient begins cancer treatments, it starts with a series of diagnostic examinations (both noninvasive and invasive procedures, depending on the type of cancer the doctor suspects) to identify the degree of cancer spread and “grade” (i.e. the stage of the cancer) in the patient. After a series of consultations with the patient, their family and the doctors, a treatment plan is prepared for the patient which involves either radiological, medical or surgical interventions—depending on the strategy and opinion of the doctors.

All these steps involve going to the cancer care facilities, and often the primary need of the patient is to keep all these activities as private as possible—to prevent other people (regardless of if they personally know the patient or are just strangers) from observing the medical activities being conducted for the patient.

In architectural terms, this means that the cancer care facility must be located in a private and secluded area (if it is part of a larger healthcare complex) and be designed in a way that patients entering the facility cannot be easily viewed by the public. Private driveways, visually hidden walks, and other such similar interventions should be considered in the exterior design and wayfinding of the cancer care facility.

Within the facility, private consultation rooms are a must, as the doctors will meet patients frequently. These consultation rooms should be big enough to accommodate patients and their families, as well as the medical staff of the cancer care facility involved with the care of the patient. Aesthetically, these consultation rooms must provide a space that give a sense of ease to the patients, so provide ample space, like high ceilings, windows overlooking pleasing environments, and comfortable furniture.

Waiting areas should be designed to have a variety of seating styles, so some spaces can be comfortable for small groups, a space might be designed for a couple, and so on. This should also be accented with amenities to make waiting a little easier for the patients and visitors of the facility. (I discussed parts of this idea on the post about the effect of technology in dialysis centers.)

A Peaceful Environment

Overall, the design of the facility focuses on presenting a space that can calm the mind of the patient. Much like how designing privacy elements to the space can help alleviate some of the anxiety that the patient feels, creating an environment that fosters a peaceful state is essential for the cancer care facility. In other words, the patient must not fear the space, which I discussed in this post. The design of the space must be welcoming to the patient.

Aside from the aspects I mentioned in that post, one way of fostering a peaceful environment is making the cancer care facility spacious in terms of wider corridors, bigger waiting areas, and larger consultation rooms. Another would be creating green spaces that the patients can view from the interiors of the space. Better, too, if patients are able to visit the green space. Some water features that give natural sound cues (like fountains and similar structures) are also a potential consideration for the space.

Expansion Spaces

Cancer care facilities are also spaces that require expansion areas for future treatments, diagnostic systems, or additional spaces for patients. Cancer Care is an evolving medical discipline, with new technologies and procedures being implemented at a rapid pace. Cancer cases are also (unfortunately) on the rise, so a cancer care facility should be able to address the need for a higher capacity in terms of the services it can offer.

Cancer diagnostic and interventional equipment are machines that require specific dimensions, systems, and operations to be utilized properly—so cancer care facilities should have the space to install such items with minimum disruption to the rest of the facility.

Cancer Care Facilities are one of the hardest spaces to design in the healthcare field of architecture, as they involve an extensive and varied number of medical systems that all have unique requirements for the physical space. Collaboration between the architect, the engineers, and the doctors is a priority for these spaces to be designed and built properly.

For further information, other professionals in the field have these observations about spaces devoted to cancer care:

6 design approaches that humanize cancer care amid technology advances (stantec.com)

Crafting Comfort: Designing cancer center infusion spaces to care for patients throughout their journey (Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design)

"One way of fostering a peaceful environment is making the cancer care facility spacious in terms of wider corridors, bigger waiting areas, and larger consultation rooms."