How ESa designed 100+ clinics to expand access to senior care

How ESa designed 100+ clinics to expand access to senior care

Kevin M. King, Associate AIA
Brad Herr, Associate AIA

Healthcare systems across the country face a common challenge: how to expand care access without sacrificing patient experience.

ESa met that challenge head-on with ArchWell Health, designing a network of clinics that delivers both through a templated design strategy. ArchWell’s clinics go beyond primary care. They offer wraparound services to keep seniors well, not just treat them when they’re sick. That model requires spaces that feel welcoming, supportive and familiar.

Meeting that need meant rethinking not just what a clinic does, but how it feels. Since 2020, ESa has designed more than 100 ArchWell clinics in cities from Philadelphia to Phoenix. Using templated design and its collaborative process, ESa is helping bring care to communities that have long lacked access.

These are more than clinics. They are neighborhood anchors, and ESa’s design reflects that. To bring that vision to life, Senior Design Manager Kevin King, Associate AIA, and Design Manager Brad Herr, Associate AIA, share how ESa approached the design of ArchWell’s clinics and what it takes to scale thoughtful, community-centered care across the country.

Reimagining care delivery through design
ArchWell’s model is centered on health maintenance, not just treatment. Each facility functions as both a care center and community hub, offering services like nutritional counseling, behavioral health, fitness programming and social support. ESa needed to rethink the traditional layout of primary care spaces to accommodate the broader range of services, prompting a shift in how clinic spaces were planned and used.

“They didn’t just want a medical space – they wanted a place where people would actually want to be,” Kevin said. “That changed how we approached the design and layout.”

ESa’s design team expanded the spatial framework of a typical clinic. Waiting areas are larger and more open, allowing for fitness classes, educational sessions and gatherings. Activity rooms flex throughout the day, supporting both clinical and social functions. Nurse stations are positioned to offer visibility without sacrificing privacy, creating a sense of calm oversight. Circulation paths are wider and more intuitive to reduce bottlenecks and help patients navigate with ease.

Every detail, from flooring transitions to color contrast, is considered with aging in mind. Together, these elements create a space that supports care delivery while making seniors feel safe, seen and welcome.

Template-driven. Purpose-built.
Consistency is a defining feature of this program. ESa worked closely with ArchWell’s team to develop a templated design approach that allows every site to vary in size or structure while keeping the core experience identical. That includes uniform cabinets and counters, exam pods, care team areas and circulation patterns that can be adapted to freestanding buildings, retrofits or strip center conversions.

This adaptability has unlocked new possibilities for where and how care is delivered. Many clinics are housed in repurposed buildings, including former retail stores and pharmacies. Adaptive reuse not only supports sustainability goals but also helps revitalize underserved neighborhoods by transforming vacant properties into vibrant healthcare hubs. The design system makes it possible to do this efficiently, without compromising quality or experience.

Templated design has helped ArchWell shorten timelines, reduce costs and support vendor consistency. General contractors can plan ahead, suppliers can pre-order materials and new clinics can open in a fraction of the time typical for similar-scale healthcare projects. It’s not just efficient for construction. It improves the care experience, too. Consistency allows staff and returning patients to know exactly where they need to go and what to expect.

“People sometimes assume standardization means one-size-fits-all,” Kevin said. “But this is about designing a repeatable framework that provides consistency, and it frees us up to focus on what makes each site and community unique.”

A partnership built on trust
ESa and ArchWell have developed a working rhythm that’s rare in healthcare design. Trust has been built through repetition, responsiveness and a shared commitment to doing the work well. The relationship enables the teams to move at a pace few healthcare programs can match.

The two teams are in constant communication, often holding multiple meetings a week to adjust to shifting needs and prepare each clinic for construction. ESa leads due diligence, site layouts and full construction documentation — often completing the full process within 30 days of approval, a pace almost unheard of in the industry.

“By now, they know we understand their model,” Brad said. “They trust that if we visit a site and send them a layout, it’s going to hit the mark. And we trust them to communicate what they need. That kind of relationship doesn’t happen overnight, but once it clicks, everything moves faster.”

The same team at ESa handles every clinic. External consultants remain constant across projects. That continuity reduces errors, shortens learning curves and allows ArchWell to spend less time explaining and more time growing.

Designing for what’s next
The future of healthcare facilities will be defined by how well they meet people where they are and how effectively they scale to meet growing demand. That’s exactly what this partnership is doing.

As ArchWell continues to expand, so does the opportunity to use design as a tool for more equitable, accessible care. ESa’s templated approach is already supporting the next wave of clinics, with additional builds planned through 2026 and beyond.

This approach accommodates patient volume, streamlines operations, supports provider efficiency and reduces long-term costs, all without compromising experience. It also creates space for continued growth and new ideas without reinventing the process every time. By standardizing the right elements and scaling with purpose, ArchWell is able to care for more seniors, empower more providers and reach more communities.

“This isn’t just about buildings. It’s about removing friction so more people get care, and get it consistently,” Kevin said.

“Templated design is a powerful tool for expanding care, and the right partner makes all the difference,” Brad said. “Our work with ArchWell shows what’s possible and how much further this approach can take healthcare systems.”

Ready to talk about your next healthcare project? Get in touch with our team.