Waterford Primary Care Centre

• Primary care
• 4667 Sqm

Waterford Primary Care Centre

A new primary care centre in Waterford is set to complement healthcare services in the local area. The new facility at Waterford is one of 14 primary care centres being delivered across Ireland for client the Health Service Executive (HSE) by a consortium comprising Prime, Balfour Beattyand HICL Infrastructure Company Ltd.

The centre, which totals 4,667sqm, will house a wide range of community-based services, such as GPs, dental, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, mental health services, speech and language therapy, podiatry and public health nursing.

The HSE had already taken the project through design and planning before appointing Prime to review the plans to ensure best value, innovation and design quality. In Waterford, the team’s recommendations included a number of design enhancements that improved internal layouts and functionality.

Patient experience is paramount when it comes to medical facilities and one of the first things the team did was to redesign the entrance lobby to provide more functional and comfortable waiting areas. The external areas and landscaping have been redesigned in line with King’s Fund recommendations. Treatment rooms have also been relocated away from the building’s entrance and from direct view of waiting areas to increase patient privacy and dignity.

Dental services at the centre were also reviewed and an enhanced entrance, reception and waiting area were all developed, creating a dedicated dental zone. The result will be improved wayfinding for patients and greater accessibility for disabled visitors. GP sub-waiting rooms have also been redesigned to increase the number of seats available, while extending the legroom available to patients while waiting.

It’s not only the patient experience that has been enhanced through design but that of staff, with improvements to the porter’s room, as well as practice manager and GP offices.