Department Of Veterans Affairs
VA Space Planning Criteria (Chapter 202)
Washington, DC 20420
November 2006
3
OPERATING RATIONALE AND BASIS OF CRITERIA
A. Workload Projections or planned services / modalities for a specific VA medical
center, hospital or satellite outpatient clinic project are provided by the VA Central
Office (VACO) / VISN CARES Capacity Projection Model. The workload projections
are generated by methodology based upon the expected veteran population in the
respective market / service area. Healthcare planners working on VA medical center,
hospital or satellite outpatient clinic projects will utilize and apply the workload based
criteria set forth herein for identified services and modalities to determine room
requirements for each facility.
B. The following workload criteria have been developed on the basis of an
understanding of the activities involved in various functional areas of Mental Health
Clinics and their relationship with other departments and services of a medical facility.
These criteria are predicated on established and/or anticipated best practice
standards. These criteria are subject to modification and adjustment relative to
developments in state-of-the-art equipment, medical practice, and subsequent
planning and design.
C. Room capacity calculation per year should be based on:
Operating days per year x Hours of operation per day
= Number of
Minutes per clinic stop / 60 minutes
annual clinic
stops
The general planning model for VA facilities assumes 250 Operating Days per
Year and 8 Hours of Operation per Day. Room capacity will fluctuate as hours of
operation are modified, i.e., additional capacity may be generated by extending
the daily hours of operation within the same physical setting.
Basic Room Efficiency Factor selected for Day Hospital is 80%.
Example: For a Day Hospital Group Therapy Sessions that averages 60 minutes:
250 operating days per year x 8 hours of operation per day
= 2,000 annual
60 / 60 minutes
Group Therapy
Sessions
A maximum capacity of 2,000 Group Therapy Sessions per year, assuming 100%
utilization. However, 100% utilization is not realistic. Apply an 80% Efficiency
Factor as a design standard for Day Hospital.
2,000 x 80% = 1,600 annual Group Therapy Sessions.
Substance Abuse Clinic (Chapter 202): Page 202-4 of 8
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