New Neuroscience Health Center Brings Comprehensive Care under One Roof

When the doors open in January, it marks the completion of the Hoover campus renovation that began in 2009. It also signals the beginning of a new era in neuroscience at Stanford Health Care.

The Neuroscience Health Center brings together, in one location, 21 outpatient subspecialties in neurology, neurosurgery, neuro rehabilitation and neuro interventional radiology. It is the first academic medical center in the nation to offer such consolidated care. Built from the ground up in just a year, the Center is a showcase for new technology. It houses Stanford's first PET/MRI in an outpatient clinic. It introduces a new boarding pass system for check-in. And it brings the medication administration record (MAR) to the ambulatory setting. It is also a testament to patient-centered design.

For Alison Kerr, Vice President, Neurosciences Service Line, Psychiatry and Behavioral Science & Operations, the building exemplifies the long-term vision of neurosciences at Stanford—to lead in caring for people with neurologic disorders and translating innovations into cures. "We have been very intentional in designing this building with all of our neuroscience services, our clinical services, our supportive services, our imaging, and infusion, all under one roof," said Kerr. "We have really tried to own the complexity of care for our patients."

One-stop care

For patients with neurologic conditions, multiple appointments in one day are the norm. Those multiple appointments mean standing in line three to four times a day at separate locations—clinic and rehabilitation appointments at Boswell, imaging and lab appointments at the main hospital and occasional appointments at Hoover.

The Neuroscience Health Center consolidates all of this care into one building, with centrally located elevators to allow quick and easy access between floors. Care was taken to reduce the number of steps patients have to take as they seek care for multiple visits.

The most physically challenged patients, those with neuromuscular and movement disorders, are seen on the first floor for clinic and rehab appointments. This level also houses a Balance and Gait Lab, occupational and physical therapy and a Wellness Center.

The second floor includes all neurodiagnostic testing, including an autonomic lab and thermoregulatory sweat testing, a new service for Stanford Health Care. It also includes procedure and treatment areas, infusion stations, a pre-op clinic and pharmacy.

The neurology and neurosurgery clinics dominate the third floor with 30 exam rooms, grouped in pods of six to allow clinical teams to work together by specialty.

The fourth floor is home base for physician and administrative offices, neuropsychology test evaluation and a hub for multidisciplinary collaboration. It also provides dedicated clinical trials research space, neuropsychology testing rooms, a clinical research lab and a work area for advanced practice providers. An outdoor patio for staff completes the top floor.

All imaging services are located on the ground floor, and include positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI), MRI, CT, Fluoroscopy, General Radiography and Ultrasound.

Designed by patients

"Every single detail that you see in the building, from the floors to the fabrics to the chairs to our centralized check-in space, was chosen by members of our Patient/Family Advisory Council," said Kerr. Soft, non-fluorescent lighting was chosen to accommodate the light sensitivity of headache patients. Carpeting, upholstery and wall colors are subdued to minimize seizures in epilepsy patients. Floor surfaces were selected to reduce the fall risk for movement disorder and stroke patients.

"This building represents maximizing a person’s function and potential," said Kerr. For her, the Wellness Center, which will be used for restorative movement classes and patient education, is at the heart of accomplishing those functional goals. On the building's grounds a mobility garden lets patients test their legs in a natural setting with gravel, tan bark and steps. A dedicated parking area nearby lets therapists work with patients to restore their driving ability or to teach them how to get in and out of their cars, a skill often affected by neurological disorders.

In the centralized check-in area on the first floor, desks are low and open so that individuals in wheelchairs can speak eye-to-eye with staff members. Patients will check in only once, no matter how many appointments they have that day. They will receive boarding passes that list the time, location and name of their provider for each of their appointments. No secondary check-in is required. Instead, patients will scan their boarding pass at an arrival station on each floor—without standing in line for a check-in with staff. The scanning process automatically alerts clinic staff of their arrival.

"The boarding pass gives them guidance on how they’re going to spend their day," said Chris Albini, Senior Project Manager for IT.
"We're being very mindful of reducing delays and really showing that we value the patient's time. We're doing everything in our power to streamline the process."