Project category: New construction (completed March 2006)

Chief administrator: Tiffany Reichle, Clinic/Office Manager, (512) 458-8400

Firm: Susman Tisdale Gayle, (512) 899-3500

Design team: Kelly Halls, Project Director; Julie Featherston, Project Designer; Victor Arrieta, Design Team Member

Photography: Casey Dunn

Total building area (sq. ft.): 9,700

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $76

Total construction cost (excluding land): $736,000

In addition to being one of the top 50 doctors in the state, Thomas Blevins, MD, balances the latest treatments and procedures with a bedside manner as kind as they come. Texas hospitality extends into every arena at Texas Diabetes & Endocrinology. The 9,700-sq.-ft. clinic reflects an environment reminiscent of the Hill Country—relaxed, inviting, and local.

Accommodations to bariatric and geriatric patients inspire the use of light, layout size and orientation, and furniture selection. With glass transoms at every room, corridors appear more spacious, rooms appear more vibrant, and daily tasks are completed by natural light.

A conscious effort was made to orient patients through the clinic. The slate walls act as a landmark for check-in and checkout; pendant lighting through the corridor attracts patients to the main egress. Archways soften a lengthy stretch of hallway, and specialty paint finishes create additional depth.

Alcoves off the main corridor distinguish physician areas and maximize patient/staff workflow. The pathology laboratory and a dietitian consultation office give patients a “one-stop shop” for blood testing and nutrient education.

The vinyl wood-plank flooring throughout the lobby and conference room and the limestone- patterned tile in the patient rooms provide warmth without compromising durability and hygiene. Manufactured products were selected that retain the soothing properties of natural materials, combined with the ability to withstand commercial cleaning. Glass and steel blend with accents of slate, two-tone wood, and quartz surfaces in an earthen color palette rich with texture.