The Heart and Vascular Center at Great River Medical Center in West Burlington, Iowa, was developed to expand and centralize the hospital’s cardiovascular services. The client wanted to bring these services together in a comfortable and inviting setting. Suspended wood ceiling panels, granite floor tiles, and an accent wall that integrates slate and glass tiles sets off the entrance of this new center from the main interior corridor of the facility.

Natural materials, warm earth tones, soft lighting, and a two-tiered water feature—the focal point as you enter the waiting room—create a soothing environment. Making all the spaces welcoming was part of the initial planning and was carried out by the continuity of materials used.

During programming, it became evident that there was demand for more procedures than a single catheterization lab could accommodate. The medical center began planning this new center to include two catheterization laboratories and space for a future third laboratory. Warm wall and floor finishes, along with wood casework, make these typically institutional labs more soothing for patients.

In addition to the catheterization lab area, the cardiopulmonary services of cardiac stress testing, echocardiography, and Holter monitoring are located here, as well. The layout of the diagnostic area, recovery area, and catheterization labs was designed to help patients stay in their respective areas but still allow the physicians and staff a connection between the areas.

Ultimately, a synergistic approach produced a project that successfully accomplished the objectives set forth by the hospital.

Project category: New construction & Remodel/Renovation (completed February 2006)

Chief administrator: Mark Richardson, President, (319) 768-9000

Firm: InVision Architecture, Ltd., (319) 233-8419

Design team: Eric Ritland, AIA, Principal-in-Charge; Brian Sanderman, AIA, Project Manager; Robert (Bart) Etheredge, Assoc. AIA, Design Team Member; Daniel Halbach, Technician

Photography: Dale Photographics

Total building area (sq. ft.): 8,460 (new); 6,440 (renovation)

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $400 (new); $322 (renovation)

Total construction cost (excluding land): $3,384,000 (new); $2,073,680 (renovation)