Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

The hospital is CHOP’s first inpatient building outside of Philadelphia’s city limits, bringing convenient care closer to suburban patient communities. Its location next to an existing CHOP outpatient center meant that stitching the site together and providing a clear organizational strategy was crucial to the experience of patients, visitors, and staff.

Affectionately referred to as “the beacon,” a single entrance designed as a towering glass trapezoid unites and visually demarcates the two buildings, new and old. Symbolically, it marks the hospital’s significance for children and their families; practically, it is the door to over 50 new inpatient beds and four state-of-the-art operating rooms equipped to provide advanced care in the community’s first around-the-clock emergency department exclusively for children.

Inside, the Middleman Family Pavilion houses 20 emergency department rooms and 52 private inpatient rooms, with space to expand. Its floors were designed to integrate with the existing outpatient facility both visually and mechanically. To personalize the experience, each floor has a separate, private family waiting room, lounge space, and amenities. Separate recesses throughout the waiting spaces preserve privacy for visitors awaiting their appointment.

Public spaces throughout the hospital are signaled with colorful, rounded geometric shapes. Overhead, a recessed lighting feature that gently signals gathering points form “clouds” that illuminate and add dimension. Furniture continues this language at scales that engage both young patients and their families, introducing elements of play and exploration.