Historic Joseph Curran Building in Greenwich Village becomes Manhattan’s first freestanding ED, according to an article on the Medical Design & Construction website.
The original building was had ship-like design with circular forms that were in stark contrast with the more historic architecture that typified the area.
Unique requirements governed the planning of a freestanding emergency department including the need to provide two 23-hour-stay patient rooms, enhanced diagnostics and an enlarged ambulance bay, including one position for a 24-hour standby ambulance to transfer high-acuity patients to a full-service hospital.
The process was made more complicated by its location within a historic district.
Another major planning challenge revolved around fitting the orthogonal plan typical to healthcare programs into the existing circular footprint.