The largest hospital project in the history of Denmark, the New University Hospital in Aarhus, has been added to the existing Aarhus University Hospital in Skejby to create one overall hospital complex.

The resulting hospital-city is the size of and has been laid out in the image of an archetypal small Danish town, rising towards the centre around a tall landmark building. It is also Aarhus’ largest workplace. The hospital complex is structured with a hierarchy of quarters, streets, plazas and squares, to create a diverse and lively green urban quarter, and enable intuitive way-finding for its users. Systematic use of knowledge- and evidence-based design means that the concept of “healing architecture” has influenced the design of the hospital - from the layout of single-bed wards, to the use of daylight and light inflows, to the design of landscape and garden spaces. The hospital is also designed to flexibly meet future requirements of technology, treatment methods and working routines.

The overall complex is divided into professional communities with their own identities. This ensures a clear structure, based on three elements: a two-storey base with treatment functions; wards above the base up to a height of four storeys; and in the middle the “Forum” central arrival area, where public functions are located at the foot of a 13-storey centre point acting as a point of orientation.