Children's Hospital Colorado Imaging and IR Project (CHIRP)

PROJECT NARRATIVE

For this project, a 24,100-square-foot renovation of a hospital imaging department, the client needed to replace an existing PET/CT machine that had reached the end of its operational life. Working within a fully operational children's hospital environment, the design team prioritized an approach that would minimize disruption and limit the extent of renovation required, ensuring all existing architecture and support systems remained in place throughout the upgrade. The project ultimately expanded to include five new diagnostic imaging rooms and two new interventional radiology rooms, along with related supporting spaces sized to accommodate the new equipment, bringing together a diverse range of imaging modalities including MRI, PET-CT, nuclear medicine, X-ray, and interventional radiology, with suites featuring both single-plane and bi-plane procedure rooms.

Given the complexity of pediatric imaging and interventional procedures, the design team employed a highly collaborative planning process, constructing full-scale mockups of the interventional radiology rooms that were tested by physicians, clinicians, and operational staff to refine room layouts, equipment positioning, and workflow patterns before construction began. This phased, operationally sensitive approach allowed the hospital to continue serving patients without interruption, resulting in a modernized imaging platform that supports advanced diagnostic and interventional care while improving flexibility, efficiency, and the overall experience for patients and families.