Their number was reduced to 525 from the present 830 in order to focus attention on the most acute cases. Each of the 26 elevators is dedicated to use by patients, medical or service staff. Proximity is a crucial issue. A big block requires more internal corridors, which use up space. So it made functional as well as environmental and aesthetic sense to articulate the five stories above the three-level podium, breaking up the mass of the building and pulling natural light into the center.
Light defines space - it is what architecture is all about.
Light also affects the human body, as Susan Mortensen M.N. '87, clinical director of Nursing, is quick to point out. It's tremendously important to experience the natural cycle of light and dark and to be wheeled out into the sun. In leading one of the core planning groups, Mortensen says she tried to think of herself as a patient or family member. Another key feature was advocated by doctors who wanted spaces that would generate chance encounters among their peers, fostering a free-flowing exchange of ideas without having to wait for a scheduled meeting. C.C. Pei had designed a grand staircase for just that purpose, so he responded enthusiastically to the proposal, putting corridors around the outside perimeter of the building wherever possible.