In 1993, with a growing demand for ambulatory rehabilitation services and the increase in health & fitness club members, Memorial Hospital administrators and personnel started to discuss how to meet these expanding needs. They discovered, through focus group feedback and member comments, that not only were the facilities too small to fully house the rehabilitation services and the health club, but the accessibility of the sites was also a problem. The locations for the services were spread out making "one-stop" rehabilitation very difficult for users. As the discussion continued, they began to envision an ideal place where clients would participate in rehabilitation and health club services at one unified facility. This would create a continuum toward increased vitality and an environment for success which emphasizes health and fitness, and would make it easier for clients to access a wider range of services.

The planning group talked about where to locate this facility. A market study was conducted to assist in that decision. They went back and forth about the advantages and disadvantages of both a suburban and downtown city location. Although demographics indicated a growing suburban market, they agreed that the hospital had a primary commitment to the City of South Bend. A public-private partnership could invest in the downtown, which had been struggling to regenerate itself for two decades. The project imagined for a central city block would include a municipal parking garage, privately developed commercial office building (60,000 square-feet) Memorial's multi-purpose structure and green space.

Intrigued by the innovative concepts encompassed by the project a family which had deep history in the community and nearly a half century of involvement at Memorial agreed to be a major funder of the project, through a gift to Memorial Health Foundation. Since then the facility has been known as Memorial Leighton HealthPlex, named after Judd C. and Mary Morris Leighton, trustees emeritus of Memorial. Further, the entire 3-structure project in the center of South Bend's downtown is known as Leighton Plaza. The 80,474 square-foot Memorial Leighton HealthPlex would blend services related to health and medicine. The facility will house Memorial's Orthopaedic/Sports Therapy Clinic, Independent Living Center, known as Outpatient Therapy Services, and the Health & Lifestyles Center. The entire project, including the commonly shared green space, was aptly named Leighton Plaza to commemorate the strong support of this generous family, including the Leighton-Oare Foundation.

It was also important that this community-owned hospital create a site that would attract not only those needing rehabilitation services and/or members of the health club, but serve some broader purpose for a diverse range of people. Memorial's strong community-based tradition led planners, at first, to consider including a meeting site or community room to attract a broader base of users and offer a growing array of educational programs and services. Later, after a visit to a hospital-based children's learning program in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Diane Stover, Memorial's Vice President of Marketing and Communications and member of the planning team, suggested creating a children-focused site within Memorial Leighton HealthPlex. Memorial Health System CEO, Phil Newbold was enthusiastic about the concept right from the start. As the idea began to grow in the minds of the planners it became evident that this would be a perfect complement to the rehabilitation services and health club sites since it would not only attract a broad range of citizens (children, parents, teachers, etc) but it would encourage children to start considering health and fitness at a young age.

The idea of a children's health site was on a parallel track with Memorial's focus on "creating a healthier community." The hospital had learned, by looking beyond its walls, that non-medical issues such as employment, education, habitat, and transportation, impact the health status of the community. From this knowledge, a new, broader concept of creating health was formed. This "healthy community" concept has been woven into Memorial Hospital and Health System's mission. Memorial believes that a "healthy community " is as much a social, economic and environmental issue as it is a medical one. By focusing on prevention, the education of children and young families, and the economic development of the community, Memorial increases the potential for "creating a healthier community."

As planners began to include others in the conceptual process, momentum for a children's health education center grew rapidly. Initial research identified possible models for such a facility. In the fall of 1996, the group took a trip to Barrington, Illinois, to JFK Health World to get a first-hand look at a current model. JFK Health World quickly came to the top of the list as an outstanding model and possible partner. Over the next three years, many other health education centers would be visited but JFK Health World would continue to be a primary model.

In order to obtain local input on the idea of a children's health education center, Memorial staff held individual discussions and focus group meetings with community members throughout the region, including representatives from private and public, parochial schools, elementary school teachers and principals, parents and education experts. Feedback from these many diverse sources was overwhelming in support of the project; several participants volunteered to assist in the development of such a facility. This encouraged Memorial to pursue the idea further.

The focus groups also provided Memorial with information about their perceptions of the current gaps in health education and other advice about what children do and don't respond to. For example, Memorial was warned that children are already immersed in and advised about the harms of using drugs and alcohol and, that this would not be a good setting for a sole focus on abuse issues. Members of the focus teams suggested that the center include ways for teachers to access new tools and ideas for teaching health to their students. The focus group participants also advised that the needs of handicapped children be addressed through the exhibits and within the facility. This information was a starting point for detailed discussions during the development stages of the process of creating this innovative, non-traditional, interactive, creative learning environment for young children and their families.

Some of the outcomes from focus group discussions included the following:

Description:

An educational center primarily targeting children, but open to a variety of groups throughout the year. Located within Memorial Leighton HealthPlex, this unique center will offer innovative learning that promotes wellness and quality of life. The center will compliment the elementary school health curriculum by offering a dynamic learning environment on a variety of topics suggested by an advisory group.

Characteristics of the Facility:

Hands-on environment
Fun designed into the activities
Space for structured presentations as well as free time
Sensitivity to handicapped children
Combining visual/audio/tactile senses
Creates dynamic memories for children

Key Topics Under Consideration:

Life Choices & Consequences - nutrition, dental care, skin cancer, self esteem issues, exercise, smoking, helmets, drugs etc.

Accident & Injury Prevention -head injuries, railroad crossings, seat belts, poisons, street safety

Handicapped Sensitivity - better understanding of what those in wheelchairs/etc. go through- how life changes.

How Viruses Spread -personal hygiene, prevention of communicable diseases

Basic Anatomy and how our bodies and brains work.

Summary of Focus Group Feedback on the idea of a Children's Health Education Museum in South Bend:

Don't forget the basics- proper hygiene, lice, hand-washing, how viruses spread, etc. In schools we see that these lessons need attention.
We lack the time or updated materials to properly cover health education in elementary schools. Health education is often an "add-on" duty.
We're always looking for new ways to present material. Field trips are important and if the content is of high quality, we can always make the arrangements to take a trip. We plan it into the schedule.
Don't over emphasize things like drug abuse. The children are bombarded with this message and it's to the point that they're tired of hearing the same old thing. Also, we wouldn't want child abuse issues to come up on a field trip since we would"t have the support network handy to act immediately.
Educators would love a place to learn more about the newest ways to cover health and medical topics. A lending library or a place where teachers from different towns could come together to share ideas and brainstorm would be great. Almost a support group for teachers.
Kids sometimes pay better attention to lessons they learn from other kids. Some way of incorporating real life stories into the exhibits or presentations would be popular with kids.
Some advance materials that can be used in the classrooms prior to a trip, or as a follow-up after a trip would help. We would like to get the kids excited before the actual trip.
It is important that we get the kids in and out before lunch or before the buses are ready to take them home for the day. It's not important that they eat at the museum.
Don't forget the handicapped and obese children. It's a good idea to have exhibits that include physical activities as long, as the children who can't participate aren't completely left out. They need something else they can do. Don't forget about wheelchair access.
All school populations aren't alike. Some children are very used to video games and lights and noises. The Amish children are sometimes afraid to get in the elevators when they tour the hospital. Some have never been in an elevator.
It would seem to be important to have different areas for different ages. If the facility were open on the weekends, families may come with kids of many ages.
We have systems in place to handle the admission fees. $3 or $4 is not a problem. We can get the funds for the kids who don't have the money most of the time.
High school students might also benefit from some type of health care career information in addition to the healthy lifestyles aspects.
Remember to focus on things that contribute to death in children. Accidents are still a top killer. Issues such as helmets, seat belts, train crossings, paint sniffing, sun exposure are a real risk to some of these kids.
The kids should have fun. The facility should have fun built into it.
It's important that the facility be clean. Especially the bathrooms. It's tough to stay clean with so many kids in and out but it needs to have a reputation of being squeaky clean.
We like to have something that the kids can take home to carry the information back to their families. Most parents like to know what was covered. However, some kids may get mixed messages when they go home about smoking, diet, etc.
The topics should change so we can come back different times each year.
It would be nice if children could get immediate feedback on some things so they can work a bit and come back and see if they've improved. Also this would be good to share with the parents.
There should be space where kids can really play and learn at the same time. Some open space in addition to space to sit down and pay attention to the lesson.
Two years is too long for us to wait for a great health exhibit in this region.
A library where students and teachers can research health topics would be nice. Also, if there was a way to be interactive with other museums or national resources.
Information on choices and consequences is important -They need to understand that they can make a difference in how healthy they will be as adults.

During the winter of 1997, the original concept for a community room was reborn and became a full, one floor, children's health and education museum model. As more and more research was collected and input provided, Memorial realized that additional space would be needed in order to achieve all of the objectives that began to surface. In addition, popular educational literature stressed the importance of several key ingredients including; interactivity, free and structured education time, and fun.

Results of the focus groups, national models and possible local applications were presented to Memorial staff and leadership. Memorial planners believed that in order to move further into the design and planning process a trip to Barrington's JFK Health World might produce some helpful outcomes. Memorial and community leaders were invited to visit the facility to prepare for additional planning and decision-making sessions. Those who visited JFK Health World had varying reactions. Some of the visitors were used to more traditional education models and seemed overwhelmed and possibly confused by this hi-tech and seemingly unstructured environment. It took several one on one sessions with these individuals to fully understand this new model and its growing viability. Memorial collected valuable feedback on likes and dislikes from those who visited the Barrington facility. Throughout the next two years nearly 400 people would participate in Memorial's trips to JFK Health World. Various groups visiting Barrington included: Board Members, teachers, Junior League, community leaders, physicians, hospital staff and other interested participants.