Putting a new twist on traditional SNF care: Hatsutomi Health Care Hospital.

Japanese elders traditionally are taken care of at home by their children. But, as more and more Japanese women, the primary caregivers for the elderly living at home, move into me work force, there is a need for facilities where the staff is specially trained to meet the needs of seniors.

The Hatsutomi Health Care Hospital in Hatsutomi, Japan, winner of the Skilled Nursing Facilities category in CLTC's annual Order Of Excellence in Design and Architecture awards, combined care with design to meet those needs.

Japanese laws require that nursing homes meet many of the same skill and technological standards as those in the United States, said David Hance, a principal with the Pittsburgh-based architectural and design firm of Perkins Eastman, which was hired to design such a facility in Hatsutomi, Japan.

Via email, spokesperson Aiichiro Otaka said Japanese geriatric medical care facilities are required to meet certain conditions such as room size, staffing and amenities. "Hatsutomi has been noted for its medical care for the aged, especially for dementia care, even before renovation. Hatsutomi Royal has contributed to further differentiating them from other hospitals with hotel-like high-end amenities such as spacious patient rooms and various quality public areas."

Hatsutomi's trustees asked Perkins Eastman to meld the ways of the east with the style, technology and the skill level of the west. Jan Olson, a retired director of nursing in long term care said that to be considered a skilled nursing facility it "must provide more than just custodial care." It should provide "monitoring of the patient after medications are administered, wound care and far more intensive care than a short-term care facility would. And, all of this should be on a 24-hour basis."

Hatsutomi officials were in the process of renovating their hospital and clinic facility and cutting their 660-bed hospital unit down to 420 beds. The officials asked the firm to design a residential wing that mixed the "new world" with the old.

Perkins Eastman designed a 240-bed, seven-story addition to house the nursing home. "We saw it as an interesting challenge," Hance said.

The Hatsutomi hospital is a geriatric care facility, so having a residential wing for the elderly is a perfect fit, Hance said.

With doctors next door and a full-care geriatric hospital with nurses skilled in caring for the elderly, it is perfect for me residents. Hance said. "The seven-story, 240-bed replacement building met me owner's desires for an environment mat increases quality of care and elevates the building character to balance a residential yet hospitality-like environment," Perkins Eastman stated.

Hance said Perkins Eastman was chosen for the project because the Japanese were looking for a western-looking addition that would also have many western amenities. The architects created that environment, offering private rooms, quality dining spaces, and more social, physical, and spiritual opportunities for residents, which are similar to those offered in U.S.-based nursing homes and now mandated by Japanese regulation, according to Perkins Eastman.

When the firm was designing the new addition, it was told to target the upper quarter to third of the Japanese population. "They wanted it for the more successful Japanese and to provide them with the best in western design," Hance said.

Each nursing floor in the new addition has two, 20-residential rooms. And, each 20-room section has a centralized living area, dining area and care station.

In a release on the facility, Perkins Eastman described its design as "Luxurious public spaces and homelike residential spaces blend western and Japanese approaches to senior care in a contemporary setting."

"Our goal was to design a place that is as normal a residential area as is possible and to improve the day-to-day existence of the elderly," Hance said. "But at the same time it makes for an enhanced operational efficiency."

"The ground floor public spaces--conservatory, library, salon, game and activity rooms--overlook a carefully landscaped courtyard and an elegant promenade, which leads from the building entry to other campus facilities," the release reads. The large open spaces along with the library and game and activity rooms give the residents a chance to socialize and a place "where they can share everyday living experiences," Hance said. But for those residents who want a quiet place to enjoy a book, there are also reading nooks.

For residents who want to socialize without the hustle and bustle of the larger common areas, there is a family kitchen/living area located in each of the housing units on every nursing floor.

The facility marks the beginning of a new geriatric care model for Japanese elders with private rooms and higher quality public spaces, Hance said.

JURY COMMENTS:

Skilled Nursing Facility Hatsutomi Royal Care Garden Hatsutomi Japan

George Pressler: "This design focuses on a simple theme of human scale evident in every detail. Each specific room and functional area provides variety of place, so important to the residents."

Kay Trimmer: "This design reflects the Japanese culture in a delightful model for their future. The luxurious public spaces are timeless in design and detail."

Armando Gonzalez: "Wonderfully contextual with beautiful proportions --especially main entry facade. Refreshing to see elegant forms offered for a senior living facility."

To find our fifth and last winner of the annual Order of Excellence in Design and Architecture awards, we looked to the east--to the land of the lotus blossom.

Hatsutomi Royal Care Garden in Hatsutomi, Japan is the winner of the Skilled Nursing Facilities category.

Perkins Eastman of Pittsburgh, Pa, designed the facility.

Photographs were provided by Chuck Choi Architectural Photography, Nihon Kenchiku Shashin.

David Hance, a principal with Perkins Eastman, said officials from the Hatsutomi Health Care Hospital that operates Royal Care Garden were looking for a facility that resembled such centers in the west and hired his company to act as architect and designer.