Early dental care is essential for establishing a lifetime of healthy smiles, with this objective we designed a children’s dental clinic filled with colors, play and learn. We derived the design inspiration from a simple client brief “Please avoid sharp edges, it causes accidents with small children“. The age group of the clinic is from birth to 14 years old, including children with special healthcare needs.

A Children’s Dental Clinic Filled With Colors, Play and Learn | Aakar Architects

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Editor’s note : “Dental clinics: no more a nightmare.” With interiors splashed in vibrant colours, this dental clinic is your kid’s friendly next-door neighbour. Elaborately painted walls with animal illustrations and bold organic furniture mimic a play area in this rich nature-themed interior. Large windows enrich connections while the lighting invites amusement, making this dental space a safe and dreamy visit for all children. ~ Venessa Thomas (Co-Editor)

Reception Area: The reception area had a huge reception table that was organic and had more of a free approach that avoided sharp edges, all the design elements were done in a circular pattern to maintain the theme of the design. The seating consisted of 10-12 people. The reception area was the main highlighting element with planters and creepers and soft lighting to create a calming mood and sofas blending with the theme.

Doctor’s Cabin (Lions Den): The doctor’s area was kept clean and minimal to allow delegates and parents to relax and have a good time. The doctor’s table was 7 and a Half feet that had a ply bent on both X and Y axis. The top was kept fluidic in Korean. 

Children’s Waiting And Play Area: The walls of the play area were left half painted as if some child had created one of his own masterpieces. Colors were kept bold and striking with the strokes left unfinished on purpose to resemble a child’s splash paintings. The floor was made out of rubber sheet for proper cushioning. The key element was the MDF Fluidic tree, which was curated on-site with carefully chosen colors.

Dental Operatory (Space Station)& Dental Operatory (Forest Area): The theme was based on the ceiling wallpaper and both areas were connected with a clear glass partition to maintain close proximity between the two spaces. The spaces had a ceiling-mounted TV unit for a comfortable treatment approach. The dental area consisted of the Latest NOX technology with the Mask 

Operation Theatre (Ocean of Tides): It had a rhythmic ocean tide pattern, and since it was situated at the end of the grid, the passage had parametric waves which made one mesmerized in the ocean theme. It created an illusion as if one had to enter the ocean of tides 

Challenges Faced: 

1. The first design challenge faced was to have all the dental plumbing services below the floor area without elevating the floor level. The old flooring was removed and the plumbing detail was done so precisely that all the plumbing lines such as compressor pipe, drain line, water inlet, suction line, and r.o lines were done in 3″ level. and hence saving up to 2-3 lakhs of clients. Also, the oxygen and nitrous cylinders were placed by creating a niche wall at the entrance and passing all the lines in the entire clinic from the false ceiling.

2. The next challenge was the clinic had full-height glazing facing the south side, heating the surface over the day and the structure of the clinic was done by combining two adjacent spaces, so it had a lot of structural beams coming in the way. 

3. Since space was done by combining two adjacent areas the existing columns were used in planning to divide the spaces in such a way that it had a central spine connecting the entire clinic. The OT was kept at the end of the plan and any infant treated in general anesthesia could be carefully brought to the recovery room which was at the beginning of the grid in a small wheelchair. The passage was kept 4 feet purposefully. 

As a design solution, we did the false ceiling at the beam bottom level, almost 1’6″ from the slab level. so it trapped the heat and all the services such as HVAC, lighting, gas lines, and tv points were managed in the false ceiling.

Lounge Area (Learning Gallery): It had a curated sofa seating done on-site and a playful and ambient wallpaper extended throughout the wall in the room.

Pantry & Lab Area: The pantry and lab area were kept as  hidden spaces which had an MDF FLUTED partition with a splash of color

Recovery Room (Leisure Room):  It had a simple wallpaper with two recovery beds.

Fact File

Designed by: Aakar Architects

Project Type: Pediatric Dental Hospital

Project Name: Kids Dental Universe

Location: Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Year Built: 2023

Duration of the project: 6 Months

Project Size: 3500 Sq.ft

Project Cost: 40- 45 Lakhs

Principal Architect: Ar. Vishal Shah and Amit Shah

Photograph Courtesy: Shutter Blink Studio

Products & Materials: Finishes: Pu and Duco and Melamine Veneer Polish | Wallcovering / Cladding: MDF With Color/ Texture | Construction Materials: Veneer and Color Finish with Alminium Sections | Doors and Partitions: Sleek Aluminium section with fluted and clear glass | Flooring: Armano | Paint: Asain Paints | Wallpaper: Prashant and Company

Firm’s Instagram Link: Aakar Architects

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