UCP Groningen — a psychiatric hospital as a “healing environment” — completed

With the new University Center for Psychiatry, the UMCG now has a psychiatric department where patients feel as little as possible that they are staying in a hospital and where they stay connected to society.

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That is why three principles play a central role in our design: that people wake up to the sun; that they are surrounded by meaningful spaces, and that they can live a normal life as much as possible. The new building consists of an outpatient wing with therapy and research rooms, connected by two “cloisters” around an inviting green patio to a clinic for day treatment and patient rooms. In doing so, we deliberately designed the clinic, where patients stay longer, on the city side of the complex, next to the Oosterpark neighborhood and facing east; for example, the patients have a view of the sunrise and everyday life of the city from their warm rooms decorated with appropriate colors and materials and from their wide window sills.

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The building, which we designed together with Vakwerk Architects, was festively opened on April 4 and will be put into use from mid-June 2024.