Project category: New construction (completed September 2002)

Chief administrator: Jeff Selberg, CEO, Exempla, (303) 425-2104

Firm: H+L Architecture, (303) 295-1792

Design team: Rob Davidson, Principal; Fred Buenning, Associate Principal; Gil Hack, Architect (H+L Architecture); Debbie Martin, Interior Finishes (DesignVision); Exempla Interior Design Committee

Photography: ©2002 James H. Berchert Photography

Total building area (GSF): 25,100

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $290

Total cost (excluding land): $7,300,000


A new Center of Emphasis was created by Exempla Lutheran Medical Center (ELMC) to consolidate Cath & EP Labs, a Pre/Post Procedure area, Nuclear/Echo imaging, a rehab gym, and other support services into a convenient and healing environment for patients and families. The recent expansion combines world-class technology with a centralized, patient-friendly center.

The Heart Center was designed to create a less institutional and more homelike feel. Warm, soft finishes and colors, stained wood, wood moldings, natural wood laminates, natural light, and indirect lighting were used. Granite mountain peaks give a Colorado feel and assist in wayfinding and signage.

The Heart Center is a state-of-the-art technology center that has a three-year agreement with General Electric as a worldwide, world-class “show site.” With this agreement, GE will continue to keep ELMC in state-of-the-art equipment and software as a testing site for new product development.

The Heart Center has every GE cardiac-imaging modality available in one convenient location. These are digitally and electronically connected, feeding into the large “jukebox” database, which holds 14 terabytes of DVD-archived records. Echo, cath imaging, and nuclear imaging feed into the same imaging vault. Hemodynamic monitoring and EKG are seamlessly integrated into the viewing stations for these images. In the patient-education room, a patient can view, “on demand,” streaming videos of any procedure he or she is having. This new Heart Center is truly state-of-the-art for both physicians and patients in the accuracy, quality, and speed of care.