Our design uses a new model for the maternity patient care environment. In the past, mothers were separated from their premature baby; the NICU was separate from the delivery room. Our plan incorporates what’s called “couplet care” to keep the infant and mom together immediately after birth and for the duration of their stay. The project includes upgrades to all the existing LDRP rooms, converts an existing Antepartum wing, expands the NICU, and reimagines the entire top floor into an Obstetric Unity for Ante and Postpartum care. Seismic and infrastructure upgrades will take place on all levels of the existing structure. Before our work began, we brought together over 25 key users: physicians, nurses, administrators, environmental services, IT, security, facilities, MEP consultants, and the contractor, to share their collective knowledge and provide insight to the design process. Over a week of our integrated design event workshops, the team was able to identify the best layout for their newly remodeled space. The result is a plan that will provide excellent service to patients, be efficient, and look aesthetically beautiful. We used tabletop planning exercises to allow users to actively participate in the space planning process and see the potential layouts in real-time.  By moving physical pieces representing the programmed rooms around on the plan, they were able to explore various key adjacencies and workflows. Being encouraged to create 7 different plan options pushed the team to consider their boundaries and think outside the box. The group then worked together to evaluate the options and determine which plan is most effective and why. Once a plan was developed for schematic design, we facilitated a life-size cardboard mock-up for evaluation.  The mock-up allowed the users to experience the volume of the space, address line of sight, and practice scenarios to test the space as if it were fully realized.  After feedback was communicated, the space is changed to test proposed adjustments.  The up-front investment in a cardboard mock-up is a small fraction of the cost of making changes to the new space after it is built. With precise planning and phasing strategies, the facility will remain operational throughout the entire duration of construction.