Role of Architecture in Fighting COVID-19
![GHESKIO Tuberculosis Hospital; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/flow_small/public/2020-03/1102_N71_indd.jpg?itok=-IsHbnVT)
The design of our spaces has the power to hurt us or to keep us safe. At MASS Design Group, we have spent the last ten years building new spaces and retrofitting existing buildings to promote infection control, and to support our partners in providing the best patient care possible. Today, we draw upon lessons learned from the field, bringing infectious disease mitigation principles to inform our current decision making.
We are dedicating resources to form a COVID-19 Design Response team, to respond to partner needs and to share strategies and rules of thumb to keep in mind when retrofitting different types of spaces for infection control. We’ll be engaging with key thought leaders and partners in design and healthcare to guide our work. These materials will be made public to the community as they become available.
Please share your questions and solutions with us at [email protected] or by using the contact form below.
For the latest updates on our COVID-19 response team, please join our newsletter.
Resources
![graphic of family walking together, wearing medical masks](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2021-01/cropped_Family%20wearing%20masks.jpg?itok=f1ZgfDbV)
Healthy Housing for Native Communities
Revised: January 29, 2021
![Senior Housing diagrams](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-07/200707_COVID%20GUIDE_SOCIAL%20MEDIA%20CONTENT-no%20text.jpg?itok=qoLoMRLo)
Designing Senior Housing for Safe Interaction
July 8, 2020
![Photo of design workshop with residents at Lee Correctional Institution](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/190307_LeeRecommendations_Draft2.jpg?itok=gOckAXg6)
Carceral Environments and COVID-19
May 15, 2020
![Screen-grab virtual roundtable](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/Screen%20Shot%202020-05-13%20at%203.23.14%20PM.png?itok=NFPHq_RM)
Architecture Can Heal - Adapting Healthcare Spaces in Response to COVID-19
Webinar: May 12, 2020
![Employees at PAGU in Boston prepare meals for frontline workers (photo: Keiko Hiromi).](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/DSC00381A%20copy.jpg?itok=UTAlv4wG)
Spatial Strategies for Restaurants in Response to COVID-19
May 8, 2020
![Fossey Fund construction team social distancing on site](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/IMG_2597_edit%20%281%29.jpg?itok=WlLc_3RR)
COVID-19 Construction Safety Guidelines
May 8, 2020
![Heat map drawing of Mount Sinai COVID units](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/Untitled_Artwork%20copy_01_0.jpg?itok=YzK58nCY)
Redesigning Hospital Spaces on the Fly to Protect Healthcare Workers
April 27, 2020
![PC: Misha Friedman (Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/coronavirus-doctors-equient-watermarked.jpg?itok=c9TXclwD)
Rules of Thumb for Limiting Contagion in Makeshift Facilities
Revised: April 13, 2020
![PC: Misha Friedman (Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/coronavirus-doctors-equient-watermarked.jpg?itok=D3AuPNyQ)
Guía básica para limitar el contagio en instalaciones sanitarias temporales
Revisado: 13 de Abril, 2020
![COVID-19 Tents in Boston. PC: LANE TURNER/GLOBE STAFF](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-04/COVIDtents_LaneTurner_GlobeStaff_0.jpg?itok=viGTDThT)
The role of architecture in fighting a pandemic
Published in The Boston Globe on April 6, 2020
![GHESKIO Tuberculosis Hospital; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/1102_N71_indd%20%281%29_0.jpg?itok=SPcJ-KHF)
Designing Spaces for Infection Control
March 27, 2020
![GHESKIO Tuberculosis Hospital; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-05/1102_N71_indd%20%281%29_0.jpg?itok=GKTEi-dT)
Diseño de espacios para el control de infecciones
27 de Marzo, 2020
We are also working with organizations leading the response to the COVID-19 outbreak. We are ready to offer immediate and medium-term service needs, including retrofitting facilities for increased health and safety, supporting vulnerable populations in their planning, design, and implementation of social distancing strategies, and supporting airborne infection control analysis and measurement for government strategy. You can read more about our services offered here.
We want to help with your needs. Please reach out if you need support, if you have partners that need design services, or with any questions.
Relevant Projects
![Butaro District Hospital, PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/0801_N52_indd%20%282%29_3.jpg?itok=AFAgztRW)
Infectious Disease Mitigation Portfolio
PDF of Selected Projects
![Butaro Doctors' Housing; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/1107_Butaro_Doctor_s_Housing_N15_indd%20%281%29.jpg?itok=m1FXFMF4)
Health and Housing Portfolio
PDF of Selected Projects
![Butaro District Hospital; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/0801a_N7_indd.jpg?itok=iaCITLrQ)
Butaro District Hospital
Butaro, Burera District, Rwanda
![GHESKIO Cholera Treatment Center; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/1215_N290_indd.jpg?itok=0mX9Qsbf)
GHESKIO Cholera Treatment Center
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
![GHESKIO Tuberculosis Hospital; PC: Iwan Baan](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/1102_N89.jpg?itok=TyVeigeA)
GHESKIO Tuberculosis Hospital
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
![African Centre for the Genomics of Infectious Diseases Laboratory](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/ACEGID_Courtyard.jpg?itok=7NnuZF_Z)
African Centre for the Genomics of Infectious Diseases Laboratory
Ede, Nigeria
![New Redemption Hospital, Caldwell, rendering](/sites/default/files/styles/small/public/multiple-images/2020-03/DD_MDG_REDEMPTION_VIEW01EYELEVEL_2017_11_22.jpg?itok=gmmK5mjy)
New Redemption Hospital
Caldwell, Liberia
We want to hear from you
Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions and suggestions.