Page 4286 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 13 October 2009
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
more open view sides of the site; the inclusion of extensive external and internal landscaping, green and treed areas, quiet areas, and courtyards; and ensuring no patient bedrooms and living areas are in shadow.
Direct that any building located near the new mental health precinct conform to the latest version of the Australasian Health Facility Guidelines (shortly to be promulgated) especially re the location of a tall building near an acute care mental health facility
The design of the Adult Acute Mental Health Inpatient Unit is ongoing and the Australasian Health Facility Guidelines are being used to guide this design process, along with the model of care and the siting of the facility itself within the available space. The Australasian Health Facility Guidelines state that:
“All new work should be informed by these Guidelines, but it will not be possible to apply the guidelines in all situations. Individual projects that involve the reuse of existing assets are often compromised by existing space restrictions or other physical limitations ….. The primary objective of the Guidelines is to achieve a desired performance result or service. Prescriptive limitations, when given, such as exact recommended dimensions or quantities, describe a condition commonly recognised as a practical standard for normal operation. Where specific measurements, capacities or other standards are described, equivalent alternative solutions may be deemed acceptable if it is demonstrated that the intent of the standards has been met and the specific service can be safely and appropriately delivered” (10;405).
The emerging design of the Acute Adult Mental Health Inpatient Unit is cognisant of the benefits of open space, sunlight and aspect for the consumers who will use the facility. To maximise access to outdoor areas, the patient areas of the facility will be on the ground level. The new facility will also include extensive external and internal landscaping, green and treed areas, quiet areas, and courtyards.
The facility will be situated with an outlook towards the three more open view sides of the site, and away from the nearby multistorey carpark. The facade of the multistorey carpark will be designed to make viewing out very difficult. The facade will be perforated to allow natural ventilation, however the size and spacing of the perforations will mean the view from the carpark will be very ‘pixilated’. This will provide the new Adult Acute Mental Health Inpatient Unit with the required privacy.
Release information on the traffic implications of placing a large carpark tower at a crossroads within therapeutic areas.
To minimise the number of vehicle movements on the part of Bateson Road immediately adjacent to the Adult Mental Health Unit, the new carpark has a split entry and exit - the entry will be on Bateson Rd adjacent to the Unit, and the exit will be on the north western end of Bateson Rd (near Yamba Drive).
Further, the entrance to the new Adult Acute Mental Health Unit (at this stage in the design) will be approached from Dann Close which is 84 metres away from the entry to the carpark in a direct line or 110 metres by road.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .