Strawberry Hill Behavioral Health Facility - The University of Kansas Health System

Uniting existing inpatient services from The University of Kansas Hospital and its Prairie Ridge Campus, the Strawberry Hill campus serves as a premier treatment facility for inpatient mental and behavioral healthcare in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

A longstanding partner to The University of Kansas Health System, Henderson Engineers was pleased to provide building systems design for the 47-bed inpatient behavioral health campus. Our team incorporated safety measures such as ligature and tamper resistance features while creating a space that doesn’t feel ‘institutional.’ By classifying each space into categories based on perceived levels of risk, patient populations, and potential functions, we applied specific design criteria prior to a more detailed analysis of the systems. Creative thinking and input from the full design and construction team allowed the project to run smoothly. To maximize the inpatient care experience, the new facility features music and art therapy rooms, consult spaces, quiet areas, a dining hall, and an exterior patient courtyard. The renovation included preservation of trees within the existing atrium, nicknamed “the resilience trees.”

When the previous tenant vacated the building, downtown Kansas City, Kansas, lost a large percentage of available jobs in the area. Bringing back more than 200 jobs to downtown Kansas City, Kansas, and expanding care within the region’s health system to fill the growing need for inpatient behavioral healthcare are two causes that we are proud to be a part of.