Chinese Medicine Hospital of Hong Kong and Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute

The Chinese Medicine Hospital (CMH) and Government Chinese Medicine Testing Institute (GCMTI) are Government funded facilities, intended to elevate Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) service to Hong Kong, and act as a window to the international community. The CMH is Hong Kong’s first facility to use TCM as the primary healthcare system, supported by western medicine. It pioneers a new medical model that integrates and flexibly combines functional spaces for both TCM and western practices. Concepts of TCM philosophy and unity between mind, body and environment, shape the architecture, interiors, and landscaping. Through the interplay of yin and yang, light and shadow, solid and void, form and emptiness, materiality and vitality, the design achieves a quiet, unadorned authenticity.

The project employs passive design strategies to reduce energy use, including vertical sunshades on east and west façades, podium gardens for natural ventilation, green roof to reduce urban heat, plenty of filtered daylight for wards, halls, key spaces and corridors, and stepped massing aligned with prevailing winds plus shaded walkways for pedestrian comfort. Sustainability is enhanced through building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) on façades and skylights, solar panels for electricity and water heating, air-conditioning heat recovery, automatic chilled water circulation, heat pumps for heating/dehumidification, and rainwater harvesting for irrigation.

It has achieved BEAM Plus New Buildings v1.1 Platinum Provisional Rating and China Green Building Label 2 Star Rating.