New Asclepeion; A total Care Plan

The number of people using aged care has tripled over the last 10 years, however the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach is failing us. This project takes inspiration from an Asclepeion in Epidaurus Ancient Greece, the most celebrated healing centre of the classical world, where once entire cities were planned around improving our health and well-being through good design. Somewhere along the way these ideas were forgotten. In Asclepeion, health was more than administering the right treatment, it was a function of the whole environment, providing healthcare outside the institutional setting.

Using Box Hill as a testing ground, New Asclepeion creates a care territory within the suburb. The project sets itself against a mythical backdrop grounded by the real problems we encounter in aged care today. Taking cues from the Asclepeion in Epidaurus, New Asclepeoin in Box Hill includes a wide array of approaches to all aspects of aged-care with physical, spiritual, and social dimensions, played out across a network of facilities of varying scales and types. The scheme this project proposes is more than just a building, but an attitude to our failing systems. New Asclepeion seeks to instil hope in the people and honour the wisdoms of our ageing society, creating a dignified place to age together.