Press Releases November 19, 2009
Unique elements help patients feel at home in Smilow
Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven is truly a building built with the needs of its chief users — patients — in mind. For example, the patient care rooms are wired so a family member is able to watch TV without disturbing the patient, or vice versa.
At Smilow, patients will have the advantage of being treated by some of the most committed and skilled doctors and nurses in the United States using highly advanced equipment for diagnosing and treating cancer. But thoughtful design and amenities are evident in the public spaces throughout the hospital and these will contribute to the overall experience that patients and their families, visitors and staff will have at Smilow.
Starbucks and Smilow lobby seating
Starbucks is now open in the lobby of Smilow. Staff may use the tables and seating near the Starbucks to consume a drink or snack, but putting tables together for meetings is not allowed. The seating at the front of the Smilow lobby is reserved for patients and their families.
Healing garden takes root
The 6,000-square-foot healing garden on top of the southeast-facing section of the Smilow Cancer Hospital will provide — literally — a breath of fresh air to visitors who choose to enjoy its trees, flowers and small stream. Even on the coldest days of winter, the garden promises to be comfortable as its heated paths melt snow and ensure that ice does not form on the walkways. Benches and sculpture provide comfort and Unique elements help patients feel at home in Smilow beauty. Patients and visitors can also enjoy the garden from many of the patient rooms that look down on it.
The Boutique at Smilow
Patients coming to Smilow Cancer Hospital for their inpatient or outpatient care will have a special boutique to help them feel and look better, despite their illness. Located right off the Smilow lobby, the Boutique at Smilow will offer hair alternatives such as hats, scarves, head-wraps and wigs, as well as wig cleaning. The shop will also have specialized items for women who have had a mastectomy.
It will have products to manage symptoms of lymphedema, fluid retention and tissue swelling caused by a compromised lymphatic system, as well as decorative canes, non-metallic deodorants and skin care products, relaxation tapes and CDs, educational books and tapes and gift items.
Piano plays two ways for listeners
A baby grand Yamaha piano has made its grand entrance and taken its place in the soaring twostory Smilow lobby. On occasion, guest pianists and members of Volunteer Services will entertain patients and visitors, but each day from 8 a.m.-8 p.m., the piano — which doubles as a player piano — will play a selection of light classical music.
Water falls -- from wall<br> At first, visitors entering the Smilow lobby may not hear the soothing sounds of the stunning water wall to their immediate right. The polished black granite wall is designed to provide both a visible and audible focal point that is soothing. Twelve and a half gallons of treated water recirculate per minute, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and, like other fountains in the hospital, Hospital Epidemiology will test the water bi-weekly.
Something fishy
Patients and visitors will be able to enjoy the calm cavorting of colorful salt water fish in three areas of Smilow: Radiation Oncology in the lover level where an 850-gallon tank has been installed, and the seventh floor pediatric infusion waiting room and the eighth floor waiting area each have 350-gallon tanks. The fish tank in Radiation Oncology has been populated with "live rock" that will eventually be covered with coral.
A professional company is responsible for the fish which have been specifically bred for living successfully in tanks. Crabs and snails — known for their tank-cleaning skills — will co-exist with the fish where water is constantly filtered, providing nutrients as well as whisking away waste.
