Celebrating the 2022 Hospital Design Competition winners

The winners of the 2022 Hospital Design Competition were recognized Friday at a celebratory luncheon and panel discussion sponsored by Midmark at the Fetch dvm360® Conference in Kansas City, Missouri. The Veterinary Emergency & Referral Center (VERC) by Ethos Vet Health in Honolulu, Hawaii, and Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony in Spring, Texas, were earlier named the grand prize winners of the competition hosted by dvm360®.

“Both grand-prize winners are exemplary veterinary hospitals that we are proud to honor as the best of the best,” said Mike Hennessy Jr, president and CEO of MJH Life Sciences®, parent company of dvm360®. “Veterinary Emergency & Referral Center and Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony exhibit meaningful and innovative design that allows them to deliver exceptional care while providing both a safe and healthier workplace for their team.”

VERC was named winner of the 2022 Hospital of the Year award in the over-8000-square-feet category. Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony was named the 2022 Hospital of the Year in the under-8000-square-feet category.

The first 24-hour emergency and specialty hospital in Hawaii, VERC is an advanced veterinary diagnostic and treatment center offering comprehensive and progressive patient care. VERC moved into a new building last year that is over 17,000 square feet, allowing the hospital to expand its services to offer neurology in addition to critical care, diagnostic imaging, internal medicine, oncology, and surgery.

Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony is a full-service veterinary hospital that offers services such as testing and diagnostics, advanced care, routine and advanced surgical procedures, urgent care, and pet boarding, is the 2022 Hospital of the Year for those under 8000-square-feet. At 7654 square feet, the facility was built to prioritize energy efficiency, noise insulation, and humidity control, creating a quiet and comfortable hospital for patients and staff. Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony creatively utilizes its 0.8-acre property to serve current needs while planning for future growth.

Representatives from Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony participated in a panel discussion with key opinion leaders in architecture and hospital design during the luncheon. Panelists examined best practices, design philosophy, and the story of how their practice came to be built. Additionally, Heather E. Lewis, AIA, NCARB, AAA, and Vicki Pollard, AIA, CVT, NCARB, AAA, walked through floorplans and images of VERC, explaining how the practice overcame challenges while answering questions from the audience.

“It was only a few years ago that I was dreaming big…coming up with ideas and floor plans [at] conferences like this,” said Wil Cole, DVM, founder of Cole Veterinary Hospital at Harmony. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think we would be as successful starting a new business as we were.”

The dvm360® Hospital Design Competition honors the most attractive, functional, and efficient animal health care facilities in the United States, with an emphasis on designing an environment for safety and wellness of patients, clients, and staff. A panel of veterinary hospital design experts evaluated the strengths and standout features of each practice to ultimately crown a Hospital of the Year winner in each category, as well as 5 merit award recipients.

The following veterinary hospitals received 2022 Hospital Design Competition merit awards:

• Animal Care Center of Downers Grove (Downers Grove, Illinois)
• Animal Emergency & Referral Associates (West Caldwell, New Jersey)
• Cypress Fairhaven Animal Hospital (Cypress, Texas)
• Veterinary Clinic of Myrtle Beach (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina)
• South Creek Animal Clinic (Spring, Texas)

“This year we were honored to receive double the entries from our prior year’s Hospital Design Contest, given the continued strain the health care industry has faced,” said Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer of dvm360®. “The winning facilities display a clear commitment to supporting team wellness and combatting compassion fatigue, which remains a key issue in the veterinary community.”