The mission of Family Healthcare of Hagerstown (FHH), a federally qualified health center, is to offer a “medical home” environment. That means conveniently providing affordable primary, dental, and mental health care at a single facility. Doing that successfully was made much more difficult when the center occupied a less-than-desirable building in a poor location. With an expiring lease looming, FHH purchased an unoccupied 1970s office building nearby, one with better visibility and access. Now the challenge was making the most of that purchase. Though the budget was limited, the demands of the project were considerable:
FHH chose a design-build solution and asked ERDMAN to not only meet a compressed schedule but also take on the unique renovation challenges within the tight budget constraints. To do that, ERDMAN provided services that included the following:
The FHH renovation project moved from concept to completion in nine months. Today, staff at FHH say it feels like they’re in a new building, not a renovated one. The facility serves as a beacon of care and support in the community, and its success can be seen in an expanding patient population and a satisfied staff invigorated by the improved working conditions.
An Evidence-Based Design Approach
ERDMAN’s goal was to create a best-in-class patient-centered medical home model, while overcoming the challenges of rebranding and relocating the organization into a new location in renovated space.