ENERO Arquitectura shares its vision of healthcare architecture at international forums
In September, ENERO Arquitectura had the opportunity to participate in two conferences regarding the design of healthcare centres. The Director General of ENERO Arquitectura, Francisco Ortega, is in charge of sharing healthcare architecture knowledge, which has been utilised in ENERO Arquitectura’s projects for more than 17 years. He presented his vision of the impact of generative AI and technological innovations applied to healthcare architecture, along with other topics of interest, for the future of healthcare design.
Innovation and wellbeing: reimagining healthcare spaces in Latin America
From 10 to 13 September, the College of Architects of Córdoba Province in Argentina hosted the 34th Latin American Healthcare Architecture and Engineering Conference, organised by AADAIH, the Argentine Association of Healthcare Architecture and Engineering, a benchmark event for the sector in the entire region. For four days, architects, engineers and healthcare professionals gathered to share their knowledge and discuss the challenges and opportunities facing healthcare infrastructure in Latin America.
Francisco Ortega gave a presentation entitled ‘Generative artificial intelligence and technological developments applied to hospital design’ at this forum. In his speech, the Director of ENERO Arquitectura presented some of the projects carried out in recent years by the studio, such as the University Hospital of Collado Villalba, the Quirónsalud Protontherapy Centre and the Quirónsalud Hospital in Córdoba, Spain, among others. The incorporation of generative AI in hospital design is transforming the way healthcare spaces are conceived, allowing for greater flexibility and adaptation to the changing needs of these spaces.
The conference focused on crucial issues for the future of hospitals in the region, such as sustainability, energy efficiency, the humanisation of spaces and the integration of new technologies. These areas of discussion are particularly relevant for the renewal and modernisation of healthcare infrastructures.
ENERO Arquitectura’s participation in this conference reinforces its commitment to innovation and the design of spaces that promote wellbeing, efficiency and sustainability, contributing to the advancement of healthcare architecture at a global level.
The impact of technology on healthcare architecture
During the EuHPN Workshop 2024 that took place at the Recinte Modernista Santa Creu i Sant Pau Hospital in Barcelona, Francisco Ortega shared how ENERO Arquitectura has introduced generative AI and other technological advances in healthcare architecture. These tools enable the creation of more adaptable spaces, focused on improving the patient experience while optimising healthcare resources.
The event addressed four key areas for investment in healthcare infrastructure:
- Improving and changing the nature of clinical and non-clinical work
- Supporting healthcare systems to deliver sustainability and social value
- Integrating hospitals with the broader healthcare system
- Encouraging the renovation and re-use of existing facilities through different policies.
In this context, Francisco Ortega’s presentation highlighted the role of technology in achieving these objectives, enhancing the design and efficient use of spaces.
The event included presentations on different areas of interest for the healthcare sector such as:
- The use of single or shared rooms
- The impact of generative AI on future healthcare design
- Designing for Net Zero buildings in Spain
- Obstacles in healthcare infrastructure procurement
- Rehabilitation and reconfiguration vs new construction
- Designing compassionate and humane healthcare environments
- Investment in primary care as part of a comprehensive approach
- The hospital at home: the new frontier
- How healthcare buildings can support holistic patient care
- What to do when healthcare buildings reach the end of their useful life
- Innovation in non-clinical spaces
- Investing in flexible and adaptable infrastructure
A key event for the future of healthcare architecture
With participants from 15 leading countries in the sector, the EuHPN Workshop 2024 became a space for knowledge exchange, where participants explored how healthcare infrastructure can evolve to respond to the current challenges in the sector. Both the lectures and the visits to innovative hospitals such as Sant Joan de Déu and Hospital del Mar offered a comprehensive vision of the future of healthcare architecture.
For ENERO Arquitectura, this event was an opportunity to share its experience and continue contributing to the creation of more humane and efficient healthcare spaces.
