CANCER TREATMENT CENTER
“Our patients are the bravest people in the world. And so are their families and support teams. But our treatment center is a stressful and scary place for most people just by the nature of what we are dealing with here. We've tried to make it more welcoming and warm, but I sometimes worry that the stress of being here can be counterproductive to the work that we are trying to accomplish through our treatments."
— Oncology Nurse
The concept for this cancer treatment and patient rehabilitation center was based on the International Living Future Institute℠ guidelines for biophilic design. I chose Santiago de Chile as the physical location of the building which is my hometown and the place where several family members and friends have gone through this very difficult disease, and imagines a building nested in Cerro Manquehue. Focusing on the cancer patients as my key building occupants I then identified three spaces within the project that these occupants will visit during the day. Utilizing the principles and elements of biophilic design described in Evolutionary Basis of Biophilia and Theories of Environmental Psychology by Erin Rovalo and The Biophilia hypothesis by S. R. Kellert & E. O. Wilson I chose three biophilic attributes and created a goal statement for the cancer treatment center design;
“Through an intimate connection to nature, as if tucked away in it, patients and family members can further connect to themselves and their honest experience with this disease without judgement. Surrounded by gentle sensorial stimulations hinting to the experience of forest bathing, this transitional space aids with resilience in movement. It is a place to feel nature’s embrace in our most vulnerable time.”
The following chart outlines possible biophilic design solutions in a real way tailored for the built environment specific to this goal.