Eye Associates Retina Center_hero

Healthcare

Vision requires seeing what others don't

Eye Associates Retina Center

Eye Associates of New Mexico, founded in 1976, is one of the largest comprehensive eye care practices in the United States. Fundamental to their practice is their Retina Center, a complete clinical center for diagnosis and management of all diseases of the retina and vitreous.

A visit to the Retina Center may typically consist of several activities - an assessment, pupil dilation, lab testing, and detailed examination - many times lasting two or more hours. A successful and effective retina clinic design must therefore focus on creating a smooth flow between these activities while also improving the patient experience during wait times.

In healthcare facilities, the staff has a tendency to adapt their processes based on the built environment. DPS strives to design buildings that actually support and improve these processes. At Eye Associates @25, the team was able to identify the shortcomings of the existing facility and propose design solutions to better integrate patient care and enhance the patient experience.

DPS carefully analyzed Eye Associate's patient and staff flow through various exam activities and modeled them for high efficiency and a patient experience focusing on constantly moving "forward" in the process. From dual check-in stations, patients move to a sun-lit waiting area, then to a "work-up" room, and afterward to a separate, dilated and indirectly-lit waiting area, one for each of four providers. After dilation, patients then move to their ophthalmic exam and, if necessary, to another waiting area for lab testing or injection. The patient always moves "forward" in the process, making a two-hour experience more bearable and patient-centric.

Features of the Retina Center include non-glare indirect and dimmable LED lighting installed throughout and for efficiency, all work-up, and exam rooms are standard size and layout. The project was successfully constructed in 90 days.

Client
Eye Associates of New Mexico

Location
Albuquerque, NM

Size
10,001-25,000 sf

Disciplines

Beyond the Building

  • Building Performance
  • Community Benefit
  • Organizational Culture
  • Rightsizing
  • Technology Modernization
  • Wellness