Case Study - Port Arthur Medical Center

People in Port Arthur know a thing or two about being resilient. Only months after the new Medical Center of Southeast Texas opened its doors to the community, Hurricane Rita threatened to close them back down. But, recognizing the need to provide critical medical services, the health care facility reopened its emergency department the day after the devastating storm passed over this coastline city. The entire hospital was fully operational shortly thereafter. Other aspects of the hospital are resilient, too – for instance, the Armstrong™ vinyl floors used throughout the facility.

The Medical Center was designed with the patient experience in mind. The hospital’s patient rooms are all single-patient, private suites outfitted with amenities for a comfortable stay. From the valet parking to the room service on demand with multiple meal options, the place is more evocative of a hotel than a hospital – which is exactly what hospital owners and architects had in mind. Thomas, Miller & Partners, LLC, has been providing architectural, interior design and planning to clients for 28 years, with emphasis on health care, education and recreation projects. For this project, TMP designer Heather Carlson says, “The client wanted to have a nice, warm, welcoming atmosphere. But, they also wanted to limit the use of carpet due to sanitation and maintenance considerations. We selected multiple Armstrong™ resilient floor products to satisfy both the aesthetic and the performance requirements.” Armstrong vinyl flooring is available in multiple constructions and hundreds of patterns and colors. Its resilient properties, excellent performance and easy maintenance make it a preferred flooring choice for many health care applications.

The Medical Center spaces with Armstrong vinyl sheet flooring include patient corridors, patient rooms, nurses’ stations, waiting rooms, emergency department exam rooms, neonatal intensive care unit spaces, offices and consultation rooms. Soothing “area rug” insets made with TRANSLATIONS™ desert sand, sage, cobalt and café mocha, plus PERSPECTIVES™ brushed concrete and oxidized red, feature intriguing geometric designs to create soothing spaces. Contrasting weld rods in black and purple colors outline and detail the designs. The insets are used within larger field areas of TIMBERLINE® dark cherry and beech. Areas requiring greater asepsis and durability have floor designs made with MEDINTECH® grayed blue and desert gold. Armstrong SAFEGUARD™ Hydro in corn is used in wet areas that require greater slip retardance, such as surgical scrub spaces. Carlson concludes, “The client wanted a nice, upscale look. We were able to create many sophisticated geometric and abstract organic designs that had a color and design connection”

Economical and durable Standard EXCELON® Imperial® Texture is used “behind the scenes” in staff lounges, storage rooms, clean utility rooms and stair landings. Even those value-driven spaces are color and design-coordinated with the higher visibility spaces, using Imperial Texture brushed sand, grayed blue, tea garden green and moss green.

Carlson comments on aspects that made this job a success. “Our Armstrong representative was very helpful providing samples and reviewing our specifications. We also used TechLine assistance on this project. They’re always helpful! The installers, All Commercial Floors, did a first-rate job. In fact, this was one of the most trouble free installations I can recall, due to the good working relationship of everybody on the team.”

The 224-bed hospital was the first new hospital construction project for IASIS Healthcare, which owns and operates 14 hospitals in five states. It has been recognized as a Solucient Top 100 Heart Hospital and has earned the Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations for the treatment of acute coronary syndrome.