Skokie Hospital’s new 76,000-square-foot surgical pavilion includes eight modern operating rooms, patient recovery bays, sterile supply, and staff amenities. A large new gastrointestinal lab suite occupies the first floor. The GI suite features a dedicated check-in and waiting area, five procedural rooms, and 15 private recovery rooms. The addition also holds a new conference center, and is connected to the main hospital and to an Ambulatory Care Center via pedestrian bridge.
A second phase of the project included renovations of four existing operating rooms to match the design of the new ORs, and a new PACU, both within the existing hospital next to the new pavilion.
GBA designed and then commissioned the mechanical and plumbing systems, including air-handling units, in-line return fans, variable air volume terminal units, exhaust fans, hot water heat exchangers, and heating hot water pumps. GBA also designed medical gas and fire protection systems.
- Central systems were first provided for the new surgical pavilion and later extended to the GI suite as part of a phased build-out.
- Special features of the work included a bronchoscopy exhaust system and isolation exhaust system related to the GI space.
- Operating room pressure control and performance monitoring systems allow staff to ensure that critical spaces always comply with regulatory standards.
- Energy recovery systems recapture at least 50% of energy from exhaust air. Control systems include an unoccupied mode for select spaces to reduce energy use.
- GBA conducted functional performance testing of the equipment listed above. This allowed systems to be vetted before building occupancy. The firm’s work resulted in corrections of problems with VAV terminal unit reheat valves; lack of programming for unoccupied mode; and a malfunctioning return air damper in an AHU. Fixing these issues improved energy efficiency and patient comfort.
