Photo provided by Reading Hospital/Tower Health
Healing from illness or injury is not only about diagnosing and treating the disease or identifying and fixing the fracture at Reading Hospital — Tower Health in West Reading.
The 150-year-old hospital has steadily upgraded its facilities. Its most recent improvement: the eight-story Reading HealthPlex for Advanced Surgical and Patient Care, opened in October 2016.
In addition to providing state-of-the-art surgical suites and a high level of patient care, the Surgical Center boasts an 88,000-square-foot green roof.
Greenest in PA
Reading Hospital’s green roof is the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania and the third largest green roof on a health care building in the United States. It comprises more than 72 percent of the building’s overall footprint.
“The concept for the green roof came from the fact that we had a healing garden,” says David Major, Director of Construction and Facilities Management for Tower Health, “and we wanted to replace it at some location.”
“The challenge,” he continues, “was to figure out how to bring the combination of a healing garden and the natural site landscape to a 476,000-square-foot building.”
Longwood Connection
Reading Hospital-Tower Health engaged the services of Philadelphia-based architectural firm Ballinger to design the green roof. Landscape Architect Jonathan Alderson, who also installed the Meadow Garden at Longwood Gardens, installed the vegetation on the roof.
According to Major, the entire building project spanned three years. “The last year of the project was the roofing system and the garden. Thank goodness we had favorable weather and a knowledgeable consultant and contractor!”
Benefits Abound
Since its installation, Major notes that there have been benefits to the operation of the center. “The size of the roof and the vegetation assists in drastically reducing stormwater runoff,” he says, “and there are insulating benefits for heating and cooling the building.”
Mark McNash, Tower Health Vice President of Support Services, shares the health benefits the space offers for patients, family members and staff. “The rooftop garden offers access to natural light, garden spaces, a fountain, a shaded pergola, and plenty of seating,” he says.
There is also a walking path that connects the rooftop garden to the adjacent Wyomissing Park.
“You know, the roof does seem to get more attention than other more technologically advanced areas of the building,” says McNash. “I’d encourage other businesses to consider a green roof,” adds McNash. “We’re glad we did it; we feel good about it.”
Tranquil Moments
“We see staff using the garden regularly,” says McNash. “In most hospitals, breaks are in a large cafeteria or lounge, but for staff to be able to walk to a green area gives them a break from daily stresses,” he notes.
“Patients have a view of the greenery from their room,” continues McNash. “That provides some tranquility when they can see the living, breathing garden instead of medical devices. And if they are ambulatory, the garden provides the healing power of nature that cannot be replicated in a hospital bed.”
