Rural Health Care, Elevated: Sanford Orthopedic Hospital and Highpoint Hotel
People in South Dakota measure distance in hours, not miles.
As in the “four or five or more hours” many patients travel to receive care on Sanford Health’s Sioux Falls, S.D., campus, according to Andy Munce, president and CEO of the health system’s Sioux Falls region.
Sanford Health is the largest rural health system in the U.S. Roughly half the patients treated at its flagship Sioux Falls campus are far from their home communities.
Until recently, arriving in time to get prepped for a 7 a.m. surgery could mean hitting the road at 1 a.m. But with the opening of the campus’ new Sanford Orthopedic Hospital and Highpoint Hotel, designed by HKS and Sioux Falls-based Architecture Incorporated, patients and their families have a more convenient and comfortable option. Sanford Health met their need for overnight accommodations head on by establishing a 56-room hotel within the orthopedic hospital.
“When patients are coming for a procedure or hospitalization, it can be a pretty stressful time in their lives, oftentimes the most stressful time,” said Munce. Offering a place to stay just an elevator ride away from the hospital helps put people at ease.
“Patients can then be prepared and ready to receive the type of care they need,” said Munce, “which ultimately will result in a faster recovery so they can go home sooner.”
Collaboration and Focus
Bringing together a top-tier hospital and a boutique hotel under one roof on Sanford Health’s bustling Sioux Falls campus was an intricate challenge that required the combined expertise of HKS designers across multiple disciplines.
Experts in planning and urban design incorporated the project into the campus master plan, linking the hospital to a new greenway that connects to a network of city parks. Experiential branding specialists crafted a warm and elegant brand identity for the Highpoint Hotel. Architects specializing in health and hospitality developed a cohesive design that addresses the operational and infrastructure needs of both the hospital and hotel, while highlighting the unique qualities of each. And interior designers created beautiful, safe and comforting environments for patients and guests.
“It took an incredible amount of coordination,” said Kimberly Caramagno, HKS Sr. Project Architect.
According to Jorge Barrero, HKS Principal and Regional Design Director, multidisciplinary collaboration helped the project team align on delivering an unbroken, exceptional patient and guest experience from arrival to departure.
“Having that expertise in-house, having everybody looking at each design problem together, that’s really what made the project a success,” Barrero said.
Design Integration
The Highpoint Hotel is located on the top two floors of the nine-story hospital tower. Merging the health care and hospitality building typologies required precise integration of the project’s mechanical systems, structural grid, envelope and interior design.
The mechanical systems are located between the hospital and the hotel, with air handling units supplying air upward to the hotel and downward to the hospital floors. The air handling units for both the hospital and the hotel are equipped with hospital-grade air filtration.
The project team increased the floor-to-floor height of the mechanical level to accommodate HVAC equipment, ductwork and adequate dampening systems, to ensure that machine noise does not disturb hotel guests. A concrete slab supports the heavy mechanical equipment and separates it from the operating rooms below, to prevent noise and vibration from affecting sensitive medical procedures.
The architects took advantage of the increased height of the mechanical floor to create the Highpoint Hotel’s sky lobby – a soaring, open space featuring expansive windows that provide stunning views.
Windows are a defining element of the building’s exterior design, which balances the distinct functional needs of the hospital and hotel to achieve a unified appearance. The hospital features smaller glass openings to prioritize privacy, while the hotel incorporates grand floor-to-ceiling windows for openness and light. Both segments harmonize within the overall building envelope design.
Vertical fins provide extra shade for the large hotel windows, to allow guests to keep the blinds open and enjoy the east- or west-facing view from their room for a little bit longer during the morning and afternoon. The vertical fins also help differentiate the hotel program from the health care program.
Throughout the interior design, warm wood tones and natural textures create a welcoming and soothing atmosphere. “We want to help reduce anxiety and uncertainty in both the health care space and the hospitality space,” said Nicole Czapek, HKS Studio Practice Leader, Health Interiors. Attention to detail, high-quality finishes and fine artwork help people feel comfortable and well-cared for.
According to Czapek, the project presents a unique opportunity for cross-pollination between hospitality and health care design. HKS Health Interiors specialists collaborated closely with the Hospitality team to ensure that materials selected for the hotel – particularly in back-of-house areas – meet the high standards of cleanability and infection prevention required in health care settings. Czapek also highlighted how health care systems are increasingly adopting hospitality-inspired approaches, such as enhancing the patient experience with improved front-door welcomes and streamlined check-in processes. She expects the integrated hospital and hotel to offer ongoing lessons for advancing the design and operations of both health care and hospitality environments.
Next-level Care
In addition to Sanford Orthopedic Hospital, other hospitals on the Sioux Falls campus include Sanford USD Medical Center, the only Level I Adult and Level II Pediatric Trauma Center in South Dakota; and Sanford Children’s Hospital, a freestanding pediatric hospital with an inpatient unit, pediatric intensive care unit and the region’s only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit. The Sanford Orthopedic Hospital and Highpoint Hotel tower connects to the children’s hospital on multiple levels. “So, the hotel is not only for our procedural patients and our orthopedic patients and families. It’s also for people receiving other services on campus,” said Munce.
The new facility offers distinct advantages for Sanford Health staff, as well. The hotel has already been utilized during inclement weather, offering staff who commute long distances a comfortable place to stay overnight when driving home isn’t feasible.
Kristofer Kimber, MD, Sanford Health orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist, said Sanford Health physicians and administrators advocated for incorporating the hotel into the hospital during the design phase, citing the numerous conveniences offered by the integrated project. “The hotel is a huge asset, especially in our state, to help us deliver care to rural populations,” Dr. Kimber said.
This project is the latest in a series of buildings created by Sanford Health and HKS to advance rural health care, such as the health system’s Virtual Care Center.
Sanford Orthopedic Hospital and Highpoint Hotel offer “a whole new level of service that we can provide the community,” Munce said. “The Virtual Care Center allows us to provide care close to home, and then patients come here for the more tertiary care they need. It feels really good to get to this level.”
