As the community of Lee’s Summit grew, Saint Luke’s Health System identified the need to develop a referral hospital. As a result, Saint Lauke’s Health System embarked on the development of a new 320,000-sq.-ft. health campus.

Because the delivery of healthcare services embraces technology, Saint Luke’s built a paperless, filmless, and wireless hospital from the ground up. This technology-intensive campus is designed to speed the flow of information, enhance the quality of care, and help manage the cost of healthcare.

In support of the client’s vision, the planning of the new health campus considered the convenience of patients and staff. The health campus surrounds a central parking lot, making it easy to locate destination points. Through the use of natural materials and abundant light, the hospital projects an upscale, advanced appearance while also providing an inviting, nonclinical atmosphere. Separate corridors for visitors and staff contribute to the hospitality feeling, converging only at the patient units.

The ample, 420-sq.-ft. private patient rooms feature a work zone close to the hallway, maximizing staff access. Two-person decentralized nurses’ stations are located in the corridor for convenient charting. Despite a campus arrangement, many departments are closer to the patient units than in similar facilities, as determined by a footstep study.

Project category: New construction (completed January 2006)

Chief administrator: George Pagels, MD, Chief Executive Officer, (816) 347-4883

Firm: ACI/Boland, Inc., (913) 338-2300

Design team: Victor L. Mosby, Principal-in-Charge/Architect; William E. Woodhouse, Principal/Architect; Mark Hunter, Designer/Project Manager; Jana Crain, Interior Designer

Photography: Michael Spillers Photography

Total building area (sq. ft.): 270,789

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $325

Total construction cost (excluding land): $88,000,000