Marc Schweitzer has always believed that hospitals are emotional places and need to provide spaces to both celebrate and grieve, as well as ones that facilitate communication between caregivers, care-partners, and patients. He often stayed overnight on the hospital units he designed to more fully appreciate the patient’s perspective.
Marc’s Master of Architecture thesis at the University of California, Berkeley was on creating therapeutic environments. A founding board member of Planetree, Roslyn Lindheim, was his thesis advisor. After Roslyn’s untimely demise after completion of the first Planetree Model at CPMC in San Francisco, Marc volunteered to design the additional four Planetree Model sites and further develop, define, and expand the application of the principles of the Planetree Hospital Model at Planetree Affiliates.
As a licensed Architect, specializing in healing healthcare for most of his 40-year career, he designs healing environments that support patient–centered models of care for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, using their Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) model.
As a consultant, he inspires and educates design teams in the application of Planetree design principles in project team meetings and presentations internationally at professional conferences, including at the Kurogane Kosakusho Ltd., 75th Anniversary Human-Centered Design Symposium, as well as multiple presentations at the Planetree Annual Conference, HealthCare Design Conference, Symposium on Health Care Design, and American Institute of Architecture (both at the National Academy on Architecture for Health and local chapters).
Marc has published many articles, notably “Healing Spaces: Elements of Environmental Design that Impact Health,” published as a supplement to the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (2004).
Planetree honorifics:
- Founder, Planetree Design Council and VisionaryDesign Network
- Planetree Lifetime Achievement Award 2005
- Planetree Pioneer recognition 2005
- Developed the Planetree Hospital Model
- Executive Designer of 4 of the 5 original Model sites (expansion/renovations)
- 30 years consulting to Planetree Affiliates
- ASID, ISID Honor Awards for Planetree Model Hospital Projects
Marc continues to support healthcare organizations as amember of the Planetree Global Certification Network, helping leaders anddesign teams create healthcare environments that reflect the principles ofperson-centered care. His enduring commitment to healing design ensures thathealthcare spaces not only support clinical excellence but also honor theemotional, physical, and human experiences of everyone who enters them.
