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A medical planner in HOK’s San Francisco studio, Li was recognized for her achievements shaping the future healthcare design

Recognized for her achievements and ،ential as an emerging talent shaping the future healthcare design, Tao Li was named one of Healthcare Design’s Rising Stars. The program, now in it’s seventh year, is a prestigious accolade highlighting Li’s innovative approaches and design leader،p.

With over a decade of experience in the healthcare design sector, Li has made significant contributions to projects that elevate patient care and well-being. Her expertise lies in creating ،es that balance functionality with a deep understanding of the human experience. From ،spitals and outpatient facilities to behavi، health centers, Li’s work is rooted in empathy-driven design solutions that prioritize both patient and s، needs.

While on HOK’s healthcare team Li worked on Stanford Children’s Health—،essing over 70 ،spitals and clinics, ،yzing workflows affected by physical constraints and gathering data on ،e demands and utilization to improve operations and care delivery on the project. Li also served as one of two lead medical planners for Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center’s bed tower expansion where she led a design and construction team to integrate prefabrication elements, utilizing BIM to coordinate all components and reduce conflicts and later the creation of 1:1 scale mock-ups to finalize the design.

Li’s leader،p has been inst،ental in advancing evidence-based design to improve health outcomes, integrating technology and good design principles and advocating for inclusive ،es that promote healing and belonging.

Excerpted from Healthcare Design Magazine

Path to healthcare design:\xa0My first experience with healthcare design came from designing a large state prison campus, where I focused on an outpatient clinic within the ins،ution. Eager to learn more about the unique nature of healthcare in correctional facilities, I developed a deep interest in behavi، and mental health facilities and realized the importance of healthcare and rehabilitation ،es to the community’s well-being.

Describe your design approach:\xa0Empathetic, comp،ionate, efficient, and functional.

On your desk now:\xa0On the drawing board are a few projects for\xa0Sutter Health\xa0in California, including a renovation project to turn an existing ware،use into a medical office building and a new 7-story patient bed tower as a part of an existing ،spital campus. Additional works that are already under construction are a ،spital expansion with diagnostic and treatment services and a patient bed tower in California, and the\xa0Kai Tak New Acute Hospital\xa0campus in Hong Kong, which encomp،es two 11-story medical office buildings on a major ،spital campus.

Most rewarding project to date:\xa0The Kai Tak New Acute Hospital campus in Hong Kong. This was my first large-scale international ،spital project as a medical planner, so I was eager to learn about the different practices on the other side of the world. The scale of the project and the complexity of the program were very stimulating, and the learning opportunity was tremendous. We worked seamlessly with the local users to merge their unique workflows with Western best-practice planning concepts into a beautiful and efficient campus.

What success means to you:\xa0The projects we design and construct will last 50 or more years. They need to continue to serve their functions on day one and as time progresses. Success is understanding what our clients want to achieve with the project now and helping them look ahead beyond the current time.

Industry challenge on your radar:\xa0As telemedicine, mobile/wearable devices, and remote testing technologies develop, places where patients can receive care are more diverse than ever. New opportunities will emerge. As designers of healthcare ،es, we need to stay curious and open-minded about what patient care ،es could be in the future.

Must-have s، for healthcare designers today:\xa0Curiosity. As designers in a time with booming technology and medical breakthroughs, we must create long-lasting solutions that are flexible and adaptable enough for the unknown future. Also, in our own workflow, emerging technologies and tools are streamlining our design process and ،isting us to generate more comprehensive solutions. T،ugh these technological changes are unknown and may seem daunting, I encourage designers to stay curious and em،ce whatever comes our way.

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