20 Most Beautiful Hospitals of 2014

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Soliant Health's 20 Most Beautiful Hospitals of 2014

The most eye-catching awards list of the year was announced recently by healthcare staffing provider Soliant Health. Soliant’s annual list of the country’s top 20 most beautiful hospitals is in its sixth year and this year was a record smasher with 248,116 votes – more than twice that of last year. As is expected in these sorts of lists, there are some returning winners and some prior winners have dropped off. But this year marks the first year that a hospital from Utah takes the top spot. (Photos courtesy Soliant Health. Click on photos to enlarge.)

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1. McKay-Dee Hospital Center, Ogden, Utah

McKay-Dee, part of Intermountain Healthcare, climbed to the top spot this year with 39,624 votes. Last year, the hospital was #9 and in 2011 it was #11. Among the reasons for its climb: lovely artificial lakes and landscaping framed by the Wasatch Mountains.

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2. Gulf Coast Medical Center, Fort Myers, Fla.

Gulf Coast Medical Center opened in March 2009. It wraps around the old Gulf Coast Hospital, boasting 436,000 square feet of new construction, including many water features.

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3. Witham Health Services, Lebanon, Ind.

Witham Health is a county-owned facility that first opened in 1917. A replacement hospital was constructed in 2003. According to Soliant, the hospital is designed in such a way that patients, once they’re registered, rarely cross through public spaces.

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4. Huntsman Cancer Institute, Salt Lake City, Utah

Part of the University of Utah Health Care system, Huntsman is a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center and a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a nonprofit global alliance of leading cancer centers.

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5. Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center, Carson City, Nev.

Carson Tahoe’s CEO and president, Ed Epperson, said in a press release about the facility’s fifth-place ranking that the hospital’s “… open, modern-day architecture is designed to lift spirits and enhance the compassionate care of the entire organization.”

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6. Doctors Memorial Hospital, Bonifay, Fla.

Doctors Memorial occupies the same ranking this year as last, but, this time around, it gained more than twice the votes than it had last year, said Soliant Health.

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7. St. Luke’s Hospital at the Vintage, Houston, Texas

According to a press release from St. Luke’s, the 212,000-square-foot hospital, finished in 2010, “was designed to promote comfort and healing with a serene landscape and lakeside walking trails.”

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8. CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System, Texarkana, Texas

CHRISTUS St. Michael features a lake and other water features, wooded walking trails and an outdoor gazebo. “We are very proud of our campus, and we do our best to ensure it provides a place of comfort and healing for those who come here,” said Chris Karam, the hospital’s CEO and president in a press release.

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9. Central Harnett Hospital, Linnington, N.C.

Opened just last year, Central Harnett is centered around a plaza and healing garden and was built with environmental sustainability in mind. The facility used building materials that were locally and regionally sourced and recycled and renewables. It also uses solar shades and a white roofing system to reduce heat gain and a system that collects rainwater.

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10. Summit Pacific Medical Center, Elma, Wash.

Soliant said Summit Pacific, a rural critical access hospital, was the “embodiment of a modern, welcoming rural healthcare center.” “We have been and continue to be passionate about bringing the same level of care and facilities seen in larger urban areas to our small community,” said Summit’s CEO, Renee Jensen, in a press release.

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11. Dixie Regional Medical Center, St. George, Utah

Part of Intermountain Health, Dixie Regional is made up of two campuses – one 420,000-plus facility for inpatient beds and an emergency department and the other housing the only acute rehabilitation center between Las Vegas and Provo, Utah.

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12. Palomar Medical Center, Escondido, Calif.

Palomar Medical Center is the heart of an expanding 56-acre campus. Opened in 2012, the facility, which features a one-and-a-half-acre green roof on top of the second floor, is designed to use nature, light and space to facilitate healing.

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13. Intermountain Medical Center, Murray, Utah

The flagship facility of Intermountain Health, Murray’s 100-acre campus is surrounded by Salt Lake Valley.

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14. Forest Park Medical Center, Southlake, Texas

Forest Park, opened in June 2013, is as beautiful at night as it is during the day, Soliant said, because of “its enchanting use of light posts, backlighting and columns of halogen.”

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15. Heritage Valley Beaver, Beaver, Pa.

Heritage Valley is a newcomer to Soliant’s Most Beautiful list. According to Soliant, the facility features a three-football-field-long horizontal layout and a dramatic three-story tower next to the main entrance.

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16. Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, Elmhurst, Ill.

Now part of the Edward-Elmhurst Healthcare system, Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, the hospital is no stranger to Soliant’s Most Beautiful list, returning this year for the third time.

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17. Einstein Medical Center Montgomery, East Norriton, Pa.

Boasting “hotel-like amenities,” Einstein Medical Center Montgomery is located on 87 acres. Included on the campus is an artificial lake and a healing garden of 21,500 square feet.

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18. Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, Vancouver, Wash.

Soliant Health said that the finishing touches are what set this hospital apart – including a grand piano in the main entrance played by staff and volunteers and a central fountain and healing gardens.

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19. Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Santa Barbara, Calif.

Soliant Health said Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital makes you forget you’re in a hospital. How? With a new Spanish colonial inpatient wing and a “river of life” fountain flowing through the wing’s gardens.

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20. North Valley Health Center, Warren, Minn.

New to Soliant’s Most Beautiful list, North Valley is itself new. The 12-bed, critical access hospital and rural health center opened a year ago, nearly doubling the size of the facility it replaced. The new facility features a centrally-located atrium and art and design elements highlighting the agricultural nature of the community.

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20 Most Beautiful Hospitals of 2014

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