OLATHE, Kan. – Olathe Health Physicians Inc. officially opened its doors to the Olathe Hedge Lane Clinic with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in October 2017. The event marked the opening of the the $2.2. million, 9,400-square-foot multipurpose facility, which provides primary care, radiology, X-rays and lab services.

The design-build project partnered lead architect Hoefer Wysocki Architecture of Leawood, Kan., and general contractor Meyers Brothers Building Co. of Kansas City, Mo., together to create a new, reusable prototype of a single-story, outpatient medical office building. The layout was created in pods that can be easily replicated to allow the clinic to expand if needed, and delivers next-generation access to healthcare in the community.

“Unlike traditional urgent care facilities, the Hedge Lane Clinic has radiology, X-ray and lab capabilities with primary care and family medicine physicians and nurses to provide diagnostic and treatment services,” said Hoefer Wysocki Principal-in-Charge Jim Sterman, AIA, NCARB, in a statement. “The goal was to create an iconic, one-stop facility that would efficiently meet healthcare needs of the surrounding community. Olathe residents can now schedule regular checkups, blood work, X-rays and more, all in one location while avoiding time-consuming trips to a hospital.”

Sterman explained how Hoefer Wysocki worked with Olathe Health to explore different ways to incorporate their visual brand identity into the interior and exterior space.

On the exterior, a lighted band of color marks the main entrance, resulting in a signature beacon that is easily recognized from a greater distance than traditional signage could achieve. The goal was to deliver the same visual impact to the clinic’s interior, and the design team took a holistic approach to this through color. The same blues and greens highlight every room of the clinic. It’s seen in the carpet behind the reception desk and in the provider spaces. The same color palette accents walls throughout the clinic, and the reception area has the Olathe Medical symbol on their reception glass. The interior design team assisted the owner in selecting furnishings that compliment the new brand in terms of shape, style and color.

With the many challenges that come along with healthcare projects of this magnitude, the biggest challenge for this project was designing for technology and delivery methods that don’t yet exist. In order for future expansions to be executed without interruption to clinical operations, the project required thoughtful space planning and design, with flexibility and adaptability first and foremost.

The patient rooms were strategically placed between the reception area and healthcare team offices to create an efficient system. This design was created to minimize medical personnel and patient walking distances. “Efficiency and replication were the best practices used in this design process,” said Sterman. “The efficiency in layout in the exam section of the facility decreases the time the patient is back being seen.”

With this design, the modular, smaller-scale clinic ultimately humanizes healthcare. The clinic offers easy access to healthcare at a scale that is more approachable and less intimidating than a hospital campus, with more diagnostic and treatment capabilities than a traditional doctor’s office. Families can now attend to multiple medical needs in a single location that’s close to home.

Hedge Lane Clinic Focuses on Efficiency

From an operational perspective, the clinic design focuses on efficiency — reducing nursing staff’s footsteps and allowing more time for patient care. Secondly, the zoning of the clinic modules prevents the mixing of patients and the medical team work centers. This separation improves intuitive wayfinding for patients and visitors as well as optimizes the efficiencies of the medical team by reducing distractions of having patients mix in the nurse charting area.

Not only will the Hedge Lane clinic help provide effective and timely patient care, but it has already provided a connection to the community. Sterman explained that before they completed construction, patients were already booking appointments. The Olathe Clinic was completed in time for flu shot season and the community flocked to the site once it opened. “It’s so rewarding to actually see that our work is positively impacting a community. High design is very important to our firm but it’s the end user’s experience that matters most,” said Sterman.

What was pioneering in this project was not technology, but the building type itself. Olathe Health works to stay on the edge of the continually changing healthcare market. With patients now as consumers, Olathe Health wanted to transform its healthcare delivery capabilities to better meet the needs of the community.

“This project has accomplished just that,” concluded Sterman.

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In the last year, 86 percent of patients with access to their health records used their online records at least once, and 55 percent used them three or more times per year. The findings were released this month in a report entitled “Engaging Patients and Families: How Consumers Value and Use Health IT.” The report is a follow-up to the partnership’s 2011 national survey that examined consumer views toward EHRs and health information technology (health IT).

Since 2011, there has been a considerable shift toward EHRs, according to the report. Eighty percent of adults said their doctor uses an EHR system, up from 64 percent in 2011. Online access to EHRs has also increased, with half of patients having access versus only 26 percent in 2011.

The report was released five years after the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009 was enacted and the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Meaningful Use incentive program began. The program encourages the adoption of EHRs through financial incentives to providers. The report comes on the heels of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) releasing its 2015 Strategic Plan this month. The plan calls for financial and regulatory incentives to encourage the use of health information technology.

“As the National Partnership’s new data show, more consumers are accessing, sharing and using their health information, underlining the importance of interoperability of health data and systems. We are focusing our efforts in these areas to empower individuals to address not only gaps in information exchange and interoperability, but also enable them to take steps to improve their health and better manage their health needs,” said National Coordinator for Health IT Karen DeSalvo, in a statement.

In addition to a rise in EHR use among patients and providers, the study also found that consumers want more functionality and features when they access their records online. More than half want to see the ability to email their provider and to review treatment plans and doctor notes. More than 60 percent want to be able to schedule appointments; 59 percent want to be able to submit medication refill requests; and 75 percent want to see test results online.

Patients are able to trust in the privacy and security of EHRs more now than in 2011, and 77 percent of patients with online access to their health information have a higher level of trust in their doctor and medical staff versus 67 percent of those that don’t have online access.

The partnership surveyed more than 2,000 U.S. adults this year for its study.

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