CREJ - Healthcare Properties - September 2016
What are the design considerations from a functionality standpoint for a dental office? You want an office that has been designed optimally with the needed space at key locations. A well-designed office requires a number of functional considerations, including Americans with Disabilities Act compliance but not limited to it. I encourage you to review the below 10 considerations. What is the space needed behind the head of the dental chair? Space behind the dental chair and in front of the rear twelve’ o clock cabinet should be 22 to 24 inches. Twenty-four inches is better, as this allows the doctor and the assistant to easily rotate their chair position behind the head of the dental chair and treat the patient. Too often, we see 16 to 18 inches or less, which is inadequate from a functionality standpoint. Do you know the minimum size of an operatory? A minimum operatory size should be 9 feet by 11 feet; 10 feet by 12 feet is better. A 10-foot wide operatory can allow two-sided cabinets at 18 inches width for a total of 36 inches. The dental chair is about 26 inches in width. Adding this to the 36-inch depth of side cabinets brings it to 62 inches, leaving 58 inches. A 32-inch-wide aisle between the chair and the side cabinet allows for comfortable wheelchair accessibility. The other aisle will be about 26 inches wide. Do you know how ADA requirements affect an office size? An office 1,500 square feet or larger requires two ADA restrooms and an office that is smaller than 1,500 sf requires only one ADA accessible restroom. An office larger than 1,500 sf also requires the high-low bi-level drinking fountain and a mop sink. These requirements do not apply when the proposed office space is part of an existing building that has common men’s and women’s restrooms on the same floor. How can separate check-in entry and check-out exit doors help your practice? These can be very beneficial from an internal office traffic flow standpoint. The check-in door and check-out door can enter and exit from a common entrance vestibule. This way, the people checking out exit from a separate door and do not conflict with people entering from the check-in door. In pediatric practices in particular, where larger number of family members accompany the minor undergoing treatment, separate entrance and exit doors are extremely beneficial. This can also work for other larger practices. What is the rule of thumb for the number of operatories based on office size? The average rule of thumb for the number of operatories is 400 sf per operatory. This shows an average dental office size of 2,400 sf can comfortably expect to have six dental operatory treatment areas. Trying to include additional operatories can mean a small or nonexistant doctor’s office or consult room. Therefore, one less operatory can mean an extra office, storage space or a restroom. Have you considered a dedicated play area for kids? A safe and separate play area for kids is highly recommended. Often, entire families come for a kid’s appointment. It is a good idea to have a large enough waiting area for a pediatric practice and a dedicated play area to entertain the kids. Do you know the number of exits you should have? A dental office space in a sprinklered building with less than 100 feet travel distance from the most remote point to the atgrade main exit/entrance requires only one entrance/exit. If the travel distance is more than 100 feet from the most remote point, then two exits/entrances are required. For an unsprinklered space, the corresponding travel distances become 75 feet, unless the number of occupants of the space is under 30. How can exterior windows and access to grade help your practice? Having access to exterior windows in the dental operatory areas is very valuable for the patients to be able to look to the outside versus looking at a blank interior wall in a space no having exterior windows. Also having access at grade is very helpful for people with special needs and seniors. Also, if the space has access to exterior, then the medical gas closet consisting of nitrous oxide and oxygen tanks can draw air from the outside and ventilate back to the outside directly. An interior medical gas close requires an exhaust fan running continuously 24/7. Have you thought about the different kinds of finishes? Hard surfaces are easier to keep clean and maintain than carpeted floors. However, if selecting carpet for areas other than doctor’s office, we recommend a darker color carpet. Carpet can reach a point that, in spite of regular care and maintenance, stain spots can remain and can be very tough to eliminate, particularly in the front waiting areas. Darker color floors also are recommended at the dental operatory treatment areas for much of the same reasons. Lighter colors require a lot of maintenance to keep giving it a like-new look. How does the available utility size affect your practice? An average four-operatory dental practice requires about a 200A three-phase four-wire electrical service that accommodates little spare capacity for future equipment addition. Many times this factor is overlooked and an electrical service upgrade is required in order to meet the electrical service demand. Also, a 1-inch water main service size can be reasonably expected and many times a larger size is required for larger offices based on the number of plumbing fixtures that consume water. Another rule of thumb for air-conditioning service size is approximately 1 ton for every 300 sf of office area. A northern exposure may require additional heat to compensate for lack of adequate sun exposure.