Modular Adaptable Hospital Design (MAHD): Proposing a Design and Construction Methodology for Flexible and Adaptable Hospitals

This paper investigates how hospitals can achieve increased flexibility and adaptability using a modular adaptable hospital design (MAHD) methodology. MAHD can be used to improve hospital lifecycle operation, including a potential implementation strategy and feasibility analysis. Drawing from 27 semi-structured interviews and design review sessions with 19 international groups of healthcare, design, engineering, and construction experts, the paper proposes a MAHD Design Methodology framework. This includes an evaluation framework composed of five design categories and 23 sub-categories complemented with a set of design guidelines developed by the researchers. The resulting design guidelines explain the process of designing and building hospitals with new MAHD technologies. The paper concludes by identifying a future implementation pathway for MAHD with the ultimate goal of applying the new modular adaptable design and construction techniques in a real hospital project. The contribution is a methodological approach for designing and constructing hospitals that can achieve greater economic, social, and environmental benefits due to non-disruptive lifecycle adaptability.