Saudi Arabian Hospital Earns Prestigious LEED Platinum Certification
By Lindsey Coulter
The new Almoosa Rehabilitation Hospital in Almutayrifi, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia, has been awarded LEED v4 BD+C Healthcare Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the organization’s highest level of recognition for sustainable building design and construction. The distinction makes Almoosa Rehabilitation Hospital one of a select few hospitals on the planet to achieve the classification, and it is the first hospital in the Middle East to achieve the criteria.
The 610,000-square-foot, 300-bed hospital campus includes a 15-story tower and a second three-story building. Together, the structures are designed to resemble a micro village that embraces the surrounding desert landscape. The facility, which hosted its grand opening in spring 2024, addresses the need for specialized rehabilitative services in the country’s Eastern Province, offering seven different specialized centers focused on inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient care and long-term care. While service areas are equipped to provide innovative therapies — including computerized motion analysis, electrodiagnostic testing, aquatic therapy and sensory integration — all patient rooms are designed to prioritize privacy and comfort and to align with local customs and values.
Sustainable Design
LEED is the most utilized green building rating system in the world and provides a framework for sustainable design. The system measures projects on a variety of criteria, including energy efficiency, use of sustainable materials, and impact on the surrounding environment.
Given Almoosa Rehabilitative Hospital’s location in an arid desert environment, the forward-thinking design emphasizes energy and water conservation. The structure borrows inspiration from its environment via an undulating exterior shading device that mimics the shape and movement of sand dunes while also protecting the building’s facade from the harsh elements. While the facade limits solar heat gain, the building’s high-tech water reclamation system funnels condensation from the HVAC system into the campus’ landscaping.
Inside, the building levels are designed around a central core, as designers took structural inspiration from the shape of the human vertebrae. As the hospital embraces a hospitality-inspired aesthetic — featuring soaring ceilings, ample greenery, calming blue and green furnishings, and natural textures and finishes — lighting was also a specific consideration. In addition to daylighting techniques that incorporate large expanses of glazing, patients and guests are greeted by a custom lighting installation in the lobby that includes more than 1, 000 crystal in the shapes of flowers, leaves, and bells in various shades of blue. The installation was specifically designed by Preciosa Lighting to harmonize with the hospital’s nurturing design.
Design Team and Vision
Almoosa Rehabilitation Hospital was designed by global firm HDR, which also provided planning and interior design services for the project, and DAR Engineering of Riyadh. HDR utilized immersive virtual reality technology to develop the design and to guide decision making with stakeholders. RAL Plus of Riyadh developed the project’s site and landscape design using Building Information Modeling technology. Evolution Engineering Services of Jeddah provided commissioning management of the MEP systems.
“Sustainable design is not just what we do — it’s who we are,” said Mohammed Ayoub, design director at HDR in a statement celebrating the project’s LEED Platinum certification. “… Achieving LEED Platinum for the Almoosa Rehabilitation Hospital is more than a milestone — it’s a reflection of our belief that architecture can and must contribute to a better world.”
“This recognition represents a significant step in bringing sustainable healthcare to the community, with the transparency that third party certification creates,” added Duncan Griffin, director of sustainability and health at HDR, in a statement. “Very careful procedures were followed to create a safe and healthy interior environment while reducing harm to nature.”
In addition to its USGBC honor, the facility was recently named a 2024 International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Global Excellence Awards finalist in the healthcare category.