The 150-bed Southeast Regional Treatment Center on the campus of the Madison Psychiatric Hospital is a leading point-of-care and outreach for inpatients with mental illnesses and developmental disabilities. Serving 18 counties in southeast Indiana, the project accomplished renovations to historic buildings and created new patient care facilities that complement the existing campus.

The center demonstrates that sustainable design techniques can promote the healing environment of a psychiatric facility. For this, the project has achieved a certified LEED NC rating by the U.S. Green Building Council.

With the commitment of the State of Indiana to construct sustainable buildings, this project created special opportunities to engage staff and patients alike.

Patients are included in the process of recycling, with stations located in the “neighborhoods,” or zones, of the project, making sustainability part of their daily lives. This also allows staff to reward individuals for participating in the program. Daily patient meals are served with silverware versus plastic utensils, which deinstitutionalizes meals, mirrors life off campus, and reduces solid waste.

Project category: New construction & Remodel/Renovation (completed May 2005)

Chief administrator: Peggy Stephens, MD, Superintendent, (812) 265-2611

Firms: Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc. (314) 421-2000; RATIO Architects, (317) 633-4040

Design team: Paul Strohm, AIA, ACHA, LEED AP, Principal; Brian Smyth, AIA, ACHA, LEED AP, Manager/Project Architect; Bruce Brunner, AIA, Architect (Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc.); William Browne, Jr., Principal-in-Charge; Joe Briggs, Project Director; Jake Plummer, AIA, LEED AP, Project Architect (RATIO Architects)

Photography: Hedrich Blessing

Illustration: © Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc.

Total building area (sq. ft.): 96,000 (new); 120,000 (renovation)

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $239 (new); $145 (renovation)

Total construction cost (excluding land): $23,000,000 (new); $17,340,000 (renovation)

The buildings were designed to maximize daylight with the inclusion of clerestories, enclosed courtyards, and skylights. The option of appropriate shading devices and obscure glass were provided as controls. Indoor air quality was ensured by the careful specification of nontoxic materials.

With a spectacular 650-acre site overlooking the Ohio River, the center has become a model for patient care for mental health and developmental disability services, and it is a tremendous resource to the region.