by Wayne Wood
The fifth floor of the Oxford House has been remodeled into an innovative shared space for several groups in the Department of Medicine to use on an as-needed basis.
Some members of the department got a look at the new space during a Jan. 16 open house.
Oxford House was originally designed in the 1960s as graduate student housing, but over the years it has been transformed for other uses.
Today the space above the ground level is used for offices and training.
The new space features offices, work stations at open counters, casual team rooms and conference rooms that can be reserved, as well as lockers to store belongings in between uses. Several areas are equipped for videoconferencing and for visual presentations.
A variety of furniture arrangements and configurations provide options for those using the space to choose how they like to work. The overall feeling is more akin to a sleek modern hotel than traditional work space.
“This renovated space will allow for different and innovative ways to work, while also incorporating unassigned workstations,” said John F. Manning Jr., PhD, MBA, Chief Operating Officer and Corporate Chief of Staff.
“As we all know, space is very limited and becoming more so every day. By not assigning these spaces, we are able to increase the number of people who can call this their home base.”
Nancy Brown, MD, Hugh Jackson Morgan Professor of Medicine and chair of the department, predicted that the new space will be popular with clinicians in her department.
“This space will allow our faculty to maintain a home on the main campus,” she said. “That’s important for sustaining our community.”
