The international competition to design the Grande Ospedale della Malpensa has been awarded to Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) in partnership with RINA (team leader), Studio Plicchi, WSP, STI Engineering, and BC Building Consulting.
The project unifies the former Gallarate and Busto Arsizio hospitals into a single, next-generation medical campus serving nearly one million residents between Milan and Varese.
Commissioned by the Lombardy Regional Health Authority, the hospital is conceived as a highly flexible, technologically advanced, and ecologically restorative architecture — a resilient model for 21st-century healthcare.
A Campus Designed Around Care
The new hospital addresses three core priorities:
1. Responding to the region’s growing demand for healthcare.
2. Integrating advanced medical technologies with human-centred design.
3. Ensuring universal access to high-quality services within an inclusive campus.
ZHA’s design merges healthcare innovation, local heritage, and environmental regeneration. It aims not only to treat patients but to create a restorative environment for the entire community.
Modularity as a Tool for Resilience
The hospital’s architecture is defined by a compact, modular structure with five above-ground levels and one basement, totalling approximately 90,000 sqm.
Modularity allows the campus to expand or reconfigure rapidly in response to evolving medical needs or emergency scenarios — a crucial capability in a post-pandemic era.
Departments are organised by intensity of care, including:
- emergency services
- surgery and critical care
- multifunctional operating blocks
- radiology, diagnostic and interventional units
- extensive outpatient and inpatient wards
- maternal and infant care
- rehabilitation facilities, laboratories, and clinics.
Every space is designed to be easily adaptable, ensuring medical excellence far into the future.
Clear Circulation, Safety, and Smart Logistics
Efficient patient flow and infection control are central to the layout.
Dedicated circulation paths for visitors, patients, staff, and supplies minimise cross-interference and reduce contamination risk.
Separate elevators for materials, goods, and waste, combined with an automated delivery system, enhance operational efficiency and create a safer environment for all users.
Spaces for Well-Being, Light, and Community
At ground level, a linear “Main Street” acts as a social spine connecting the entrance plaza with landscaped areas.
Natural light, acoustic comfort, and clear wayfinding reduce stress and support healing.
Human-centric design is expressed through:
- gardens, courtyards, and rooftop terraces
- therapeutic material palettes of wood and textiles
- dedicated areas for socialisation, education, and cultural activities
- universal design features, including tactile maps and multilingual signage.
The architecture recognises that recovery is not only clinical — it is emotional, environmental, and communal.
Nature as Medicine: A Biophilic Campus
Set within an ecologically rich landscape near the Parco Regionale della Valle del Ticino, the hospital embraces biophilic principles that protect biodiversity and enhance patient well-being.
Existing woodland is preserved, while new wetlands and bioswales manage stormwater naturally and support local ecosystems.
The historic Cascina dei Poveri, a 12th–13th-century rural complex, is thoughtfully integrated into the campus — a gesture that ties contemporary healthcare to the region’s cultural memory.
Sustainability and Smart Performance
The hospital exceeds CAM environmental standards through:
- passive design strategies
- a high-performance building envelope
- low-carbon modular construction
- solar shading reducing cooling demand by 30%
- a photovoltaic system over 1 MWp, covering around 25% of electricity needs
- a hybrid heating system prepared for hydrogen integration.
Advanced digital systems — including future-ready building management and digital twin technologies — support predictive maintenance and energy optimisation.
Architecture for a Healthier Future
With its integration of healthcare excellence, ecological stewardship, and architectural humanity, the Grande Ospedale della Malpensa proposes a new paradigm for hospital design: an environment where care, comfort, and community come together within a landscape shaped for resilience.
Embedded in nature, connected to its region, and prepared for tomorrow, ZHA’s design defines a healing architecture for the Olona Valley — one that understands buildings as partners in the well-being of people and place.
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