The bottom line on a building isn’t the price tag for construction. It’s not energy and other operational costs. It’s not what the building can be sold for. Rather, it’s what the building can do for people — people who work, study or receive services in a building.

Nowhere is that principle more important than in health care. That’s why an ongoing national research effort called the Pebble Project is so important. The goal of the Pebble Project is to document examples of healthcare facilities where design has made a difference in the quality of care and financial performance.

The new Clinical Cancer Center on the Froedtert & Community Health campus will have not one but three Pebble Project evaluations, and John Balzer couldn’t be prouder. Balzer is vice president, facility planning and development at Froedtert & Community Health. He knows that a hospital is “much more than a building.” That’s why it was such a treat for me to have Balzer show me the sites of three Pebble Project studies. In one way or another, all of Cancer Center sites will evaluate the impact that facility designs can have on patients.

One of the studies will involve infusion treatment areas. The new facility will offer patients receiving chemotherapy a choice of different kinds of spaces, ranging from a completely private room, with space for significant others, to a very open space that will have a lot of activity and offers views of the outdoors. The idea is to let patients choose the space that best fits the way they are feeling on a specific day.

Another innovative approach being studied is known as the Quality of Life Center, a place where patients can go for a range of specialized services — from dieticians to non-traditional health service providers, from chaplains to financial counselors.

The third study will examine the colocation of 13 cancer-related medical specialities. The goal is to streamline care for patients.

The research will evaluate things like whether patients preferences for the type of space change over the course of their infusion treatments, whether the Quality of Life Center improves the experience of patients and their families, and whether the interdisciplinary area increases interaction among staff.

Obviously, Balzer didn’t come up with these ideas on his own. Rather, he was part of a team that was focused on making the new facility another tool for improving patients’ health. But he played a crucial role. And it started with the recognition that a hospital exists to serve people.