Health Care Architecture and Design

This page is dedicated to all those who seek information about physical aspects of health care facilities, from planning to construction. Thus, interest is not limited to architects or engineers. It is for the whole team involved in the design of the facility.

Manuals
Rules

Publications about hospital architecture and design are available in this section. The documents do not contain rules, therefore they are only guidelines for users. The texts discuss several criteria that must be taken into account in physical projects for health care buildings. The criteria may often be conflicting, and it is up to the architect/planner to assess which are more appropriate for a particular situation.

The material present here is the result of personal experiences and case studies undertaken by the author. The aim of this series of publications is to launch the debate and development of topics that are very little studied in the health care area, but that are of vital importance in health care delivery.

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Architecture in Prevention of Hospital Infection (pdf file)(portuguese)
Infection control techniques have been evolving in the last years. Thus, architecture could not stay behind this development. This publication focuses on unmystifying several "truths" regarding the influence of the building in infection control, as well as on presenting several details that may be incorporated to the building in order to help the health care team in the control of infections.

Surrounding Conditions for Visual Reading (pdf file)(portuguese)
Many health care facilities are large and confusing for the users, starting with the front, which often does not make it clear that it is a health care building. This text is not simply about a system of identification signs. It analyses how a project can influence the external identification of the building, of the surroundings and of the internal and external accesses.

Fire Safety Conditions (pdf file)(portuguese)
Based on the words "fires are put out in the project", this publication presents a series of criteria that a planner must consider when designing a project for a health care facility, with a view to minimizing fire hazards in these buildings

Ordinary and Special Building Installations (pdf file)(portuguese)
In this publication the authors describe how to design the various types of installations, such as electric wiring, gas connections, water plumbing, air conditioning and heating, among others, in a health care facility. The various complementary rules used in these types of projects are also listed.

Hospital Safety Manual (pdf file)(portuguese)
This publication contains information about the main hazards in health services, particularly in hospitals. Practical solutions can be found here for control and preservation within the facility, focusing on the benefit of patients, health professionals and visitors.
Maintenance Incorporated into Hospital Architecture
The reader will find in this publication a broad discussion on how the architecture project may help or even influence the future maintenance of a health care facility. The creation of spaces exclusively dedicated to maintenance is thoroughly described.

The cost of Architectural Decisions in Hospital Projects (pdf file)(portuguese)
This publication presents an analysis of how decisions taken in a health care facility project are directly related to the final cost of construction. For example, the simple decision to make a round or rectangular building, even if both had the same area, would result in different costs.

Systems for Control of Environmental Comfort Conditions(pdf file)(portuguese)
This publication presents an analysis of how to address the issue of lighting, acoustic and thermal comfort inside a health care facility.

Construction Systems in Architectural Programming of Health Buildings (pdf file)(portuguese)
Health care facilities are buildings that need to be always ready to accommodate new functions and to increase or decrease in size. In other words, they must be flexible, allowing changes and expansions while keeping the original organization. Such characteristics lead the search for solutions towards construction systems that enable the building to adapt according to the development of its needs.

The aim of this publication is to identify criteria that might contribute to improving the quality of decisions regarding the construction system to be adopted in the design of these buildings.

Rules

This section provides the technical regulations, administrative rules and resolutions developed by the Ministry of Health and by Anvisa, pertaining to the design and analysis of projects for health care buildings.

Resolution 176, of October 24, 2000(portuguese)

Technical guidelines containing reference standards for quality of air inside public and collective buildings with artificial climate. The Resolution recommends the maximum level of biological and chemical contamination pollutants, in addition to physical parameters of interior air. The resolution also provides analytical methods and recommendations for control and correction, in case air standards are considered regular or bad.

Inter-Ministerial Administrative Rule 482, of April 16, 1999(portuguese)

Technical regulation containing provisions about operation and installation of units for sterilization through ethylene oxide and its mixtures, as well as establishing the inspection actions under the responsibility of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labor and Employment.

Administrative Rule MS 3.523, of August 28, 1998(portuguese)

Technical regulation containing basic measures regarding procedures for visual verification of cleanliness, removal of filth by physical methods and maintenance of the integrity and efficiency of the components of air conditioning and heating systems, in order to ensure the quality of interior air and to prevent risks to the health of people in building with artificial climates.



>Administrative Rule MS 1884, of November 11, 1994
Revision of Administrative Rule MS 1884, of November 11, 1994
Rules for physical projects of health care facilities
Governs the design of physical projects of Health Care Facilities (EAS). Provides guidelines to planners, designers and evaluators of health care facilities. Each EAS that is built or reformed must comply with the definitions and information contained in this document, regardless of being a public or private facility.