Construction has begun on a new heart hospital in Egypt by Foster + Partners. Named the Magdi Yacoub Global Heart Centre, the project is designed to help speed up the healing process by offering patients a cool and lush landscape to recover in.
The Magdi Yacoub Global Heart Centre Cairo will rise “at the foot of the pyramids” (or at least close enough for a fine view of them) in the Egyptian capital and offer free healthcare to underprivileged patients, who will be surrounded by gardens with native plants. The idea behind it is reminiscent of the line of Maggie’s centers, which also incorporate greenery in a bid to help people heal.
The ground floor will host much of the working hospital areas, including diagnosis and treatment facilities, an accident and emergency department, surgical department, and a large outpatient clinic and rehabilitative departments.
A green terrace on the second floor will provide a place for visitors and staff to get some air, and each of the eight intensive care units will be oriented to maximize the views of the landscaped gardens, which will be planted with local greenery to reduce water needs. A new lake will be created in an attempt to cool the immediate area and elsewhere will be several courtyards and pedestrian paths snaking through the greenery.
The hospital is slated to receive LEED certification (a green building standard), though further details on its sustainability are still light at this early stage. We do know that in addition to the natural light and cooling, wells are to be used if found suitable, as will local materials and building techniques.
Foster + Partners has been integrating a lot of greenery into its projects recently, with its Icôneoffice and huge Beverly Hills development both dominated by plants.
Foster + Partners hospital puts nature at the heart of healing process [New Atlas]