The University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG, ), formerly Groningen University Hospital, is the main hospital in

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. The medical centre is affiliated with the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...

and offers supraregional tertiary care to the northern part of the Netherlands. It employs almost 17,000 people and numbers almost 1400 beds. It is located in the centre of Groningen. It is also one of the largest centres for transplant surgery in the world. Organ transplant operations of all possible kinds are carried out at the UMCG, including combined transplants of multiple organs in one operation. The main building was opened in 1997. Its design theme is based on light and air, and its 32 elevators each have a different theme. Art plays an important role in the hospital, with several exhibitions, statues, and a big fountain in the centre of the hospital. The UMCG contains several shops, including two coffee shops, a restaurant, a minimart, a candy & card store, a travel agency, a barber, a bookstore, a library for patients, and a Rituals flagship store. The ground floor is designed so that visitors do not feel as if they are in a hospital - the space is airy, there is a lot of green, and the glass roofs are opened when the weather is fair. Patient wards are on the outside of the building, so that all rooms have windows with a view. Each ward has a balcony that opens to one of the main 'streets' of the hospital. The operating centre, intensive care units, and staff rooms are in the central part of the building. At four stories in height, the UMCG does not rise above the surrounding city. Special units include: * Cardiothoracic surgery (including transplants) * European Research Institute for the Biology of Ageing *

Level I trauma center A trauma center, or trauma centre, is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major trauma, major traumatic injuries such as Falling (accident), falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. The term "tra ...

(including trauma helicopter) * Liver, kidney and bowel transplant surgery *

Neonatal In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to Juvenile (orga ...

and

pediatric Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

surgery and intensive care *

Neurosurgery Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the specialty (medicine), medical specialty that focuses on the surgical treatment or rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system ...

* Pediatric

oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγ ...

Buildings

The buildings of the UMCG are designed with the idea that the buildings and the surroundings that patients stay in can help with the healing process. The buildings are also built a 'City within the city' concept: by bringing the outside in, patients are able to continue to participate in society. This is why the hospital has brought the outside world into its walls, including a bookshop, a hairdresser, a chemist, a pharmacy, cafés, and a travel agency.

References

External links

* * (English version)
UMCG Architecture
(English version) {{Authority control 1997 establishments in the Netherlands Hospital buildings completed in 1997 Hospitals established in 1997 Organisations based in Groningen (city) Teaching hospitals in the Netherlands