Ameris Bank Medical Education Center
The Challenge
Colquitt Regional Medical Center needed to solve a challenge all too common among healthcare facilities: How to attract and retain caregivers.
Facilities often experience turnover due to a lack of continued education and training, with caregivers losing confidence by being throw into high-stakes situations without any real-life experience. In late 2023, Colquitt Regional opened the Ameris Bank Medical Education Center to remedy the problem while bolstering its culture to support employees and community.
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Client
Colquitt Regional Medical Center
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Location
Moultrie, Georgia
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Size
41,000 square feet
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Distinguishing Features
- Four simulation labs and education rooms
- Computer lab, study area, and skills lab
- 300-person classroom
- Second-floor Wellness and Behavioral Health Clinic
The Design Solution
TMP has partnered with Colquitt since 2012 on several campus projects. For the education center, we worked closely with staff, nurses, and doctors to understand the best learning pathways for current employees and students.
The first floor of the two-story building features a 300-person classroom, 18-seat computer lab, a skills lab, and four state-of-the-art simulation labs.
The simulation labs provide low-risk, high-reward scenarios for learning. Lifelike mannequins are controlled and programmed by a simulation technician to replicate ailments and symptoms of patients. The labs were designed to replicate Colquitt Regional Medical Center’s hospital rooms, with all equipment in the same spot, so when a nurse trains in the education center and moves to the hospital, the environment is identical.
Multiple debrief rooms were included for review and feedback, as well as comfortable, quiet workrooms for students to decompress with high-quality furniture and finishes.
The second floor is a full-service clinic with a behavioral health component, and the facility includes a small kitchen to be used for community events — which was very important for the client.
The same color palette and exterior materials as the existing hospital were used to create a cohesive, unified feel across campus. Smooth brick, metal panels, and natural light were also incorporated for a more contemporary look.
Project Images
The Design Impact
Ultimately, the facility is three in one: the education center, the clinic, and the community center. It was important that the design reflected that, with a central entrance and easy wayfinding elements to point people where they needed to go.
Creating an elegant, professional space that’s representative of the population of Moultrie was paramount for the client and TMP, requiring thoughtful research behind all aspects of design.
The new facility, anchoring the front of Colquitt’s campus, serves as more than just a teaching center. Colquitt Regional Medical Center can continue its mission to become the medical education hub of the region, training caregivers and serving patients in the best way possible.
Learn more about how this facility encourages recruitment and retention.
testimonial
“A large part of the culture we have built at Colquitt Regional revolves around support for our employees and our community. As we strategized and planned for the future of medical education, the vision for the education center took hold and now the facility is allowing us to carry out our mission and further display our culture of training and support for our healthcare professionals.”
- Jim Matney, CEO, Colquitt Regional Medical Center
