Health Centre

In 2004 SESCAM launched an architectural competition to design a health centre in Membrilla (Ciudad Real). The competition asked participants to design a health centre in a small village near Manzanares. MEDIOMUNDO arquitectos was awarded first prize in 2005. The construction was completed in 2009.

The location of this project on the urban periphery and the absence of other buildings in the immediate environment led us to design a building that fits in with the surrounding agro-industrial landscape. The building comprises different spaces in order to create an intimate relationship with its future users. For this reason the building has been designed on two floors. The first floor is a continuous space while the ground floor is a succession of connecting courtyards that illuminate the interior and break up the building giving it a friendlier and more intimate scale for visitors. Meanwhile, the façade is covered in prefabricated concrete panels reminiscent of industrial constructions in the area that have been adapted to the dimensions of the building.

The different spaces have been arranged around the various courtyards in such a way that the covered areas are enhanced by the open spaces. The building is arranged around a central axis that contacts the various spaces on both floors. There are two entrances: the main entrance on the western side located closest to the village while the emergency entrance is on the north side guaranteeing accessibility and parking for ambulances. By arranging the different areas around a central space the project achieves the ideal relationship between the more frequented services on the ground floor such as the doctors surgeries, physiotherapy department and the emergency department. All other outpatient treatment takes place on the first floor, alongside the administrative and teaching offices. All of the doctors surgeries have natural light and ventilation, while the waiting rooms are located in well-lit and open plan spaces in order to ameliorate the experience for patients visiting the centre

Programme: Health Centre
Location: Membrilla, Ciudad Real
Date of competition: 2004
Award: 1st prize
Category: Health
Area: 2,450 m2
Developer: SESCAM (Government of Castilla La Mancha).

Advisor: JM Sialka (Grupo SIALKA)
Collaborators: J. Ortega, A. Cortés, E. Pérez, F. Navarro