Jason Aboujeib, Health Principal, HDR

In an interview with Invest:, Jason Aboujeib, health principal at HDR, emphasized HDR’s major hospital projects, including Parnassus in San Francisco and a $4 billion project with MD Anderson in Houston. He also discussed the firm’s focus on prefabrication and target value design to address rising construction costs and lead times, as well as his efforts in mentoring young staff for future succession.

What significant milestones has HDR achieved since you joined the firm?

I joined HDR a year ago, transitioning from a design-build company to this firm with a robust healthcare design practice. I chose HDR because we’re No. 1 globally in healthcare architecture and design according to several industry surveys, as well as Top 10 in interior design. I became a board-certified healthcare architect, which fit perfectly with the firm’s focus.

I’ve been strengthening relationships with existing healthcare systems and establishing opportunities for new healthcare system partners. We’re seeking industry disruptors to provide maximum value to hospital systems facing rising construction costs and lead times. Our project delivery strategies have been naturally evolving through several major projects, leading toward advancements in prefabrication and modular design allowing faster project completion and better worker conditions while also continuing to improve the quality of our work.

Another focus is target value design, partnering with construction teams early to ensure cost certainty by drawing to a target budget and making the right decisions at the right time. This prevents the inefficiencies of repeated pricing and re-engineering. I’m also fostering a culture of continual learning and mentoring younger staff to ensure knowledge transfer and succession planning to empower the next generation of architects and designers in our Dallas practice. 

As for the company, we’re seeing significant growth in major hospital projects, including UCSF Health Helen Diller Hospital in San Francisco, Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, and the soon to open Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center New Hospital Tower, among several others around the world. 

What makes North Texas an ideal location for businesses?

North Texas offers an attractive cost of living and numerous business opportunities, drawing major companies here. The region boasts excellent healthcare systems like Texas Health, Baylor, UT Southwestern, and Methodist, creating significant opportunities.

The area’s rapid growth means new homes and developments are constantly being added, necessitating new facilities and healthcare services and creating opportunities for projects at every scale, which strengthen the local economy. COVID-19 delays have created pent-up demand for healthcare, and aging infrastructure needs updating. These factors contribute to North Texas being an ideal business location. 

What is your assessment of the talent pool for architects and skilled construction workers in North Texas?

In construction, there’s a significant challenge. Many skilled tradespeople, like masons and sheet metal workers, are retiring, and there aren’t enough new workers being trained to replace them. This shortage impacts construction costs and timelines.

To address this, we need industry disruptors. Prefabrication is one approach, building components in a controlled environment for faster, more accurate assembly on-site. It maximizes the existing workforce and helps mitigate the labor shortage.

We also need to invest in trade schools to train more individuals in these critical skills. The construction industry in North Texas is booming with many large projects, but we must ensure we have the skilled labor to support this growth. 

Regarding talent, there’s fierce competition for project managers and architects. The talent pool is tight, and it’s essential to stay connected to your team to retain them. Continual learning is crucial in architecture. It’s about transferring knowledge, and our company fosters this culture. We’re an ESOP, so everyone can buy into the company and benefit from its success. This ownership mentality promotes collaboration and knowledge-sharing rather than competition for promotions.

Can you discuss upcoming projects in the region and how they will improve community health through innovative design?

Several exciting projects are coming up in North Texas. These include new patient towers and rebuilding aging infrastructure at several hospitals. For example, JPS in Fort Worth and Children’s Hospital are both undergoing significant rebuilds. Major systems like UT Southwestern, Texas Health, and Baylor are expanding their campuses and moving into rural areas to accommodate population growth. One of our largest scale projects, though confidential, is underway in Texas and we’ll be able to share more on that in the near future.

In West Texas, areas like Abilene, El Paso, and Amarillo are also seeing new healthcare projects. The demand for updated facilities is driven by population growth and the need for more healthcare services post-COVID. This isn’t slowing down anytime soon. For example, we recently completed the UMC Health and Wellness Community Hospital in Lubbock which is an emerging typology that brings wellness activities in addition to healthcare services to the community.

What emerging trends are you seeing in healthcare design? 

Trends in healthcare design focus on comfort and safety for both patients and staff. Staff burnout and safety are major concerns, so creating a safe and comfortable environment is crucial. This includes providing quality real estate within healthcare facilities for staff respite, lighting, and other amenities to support caregivers.

On the patient side, hospitals are looking to improve patient satisfaction scores by creating welcoming and comfortable environments. This involves using the latest technology and integrating AI for diagnostics and patient care. AI can already read X-rays and MRI reports, potentially reducing the need for radiologists to handle routine tasks.

Another trend is bringing healthcare to the patient’s home. With advancements in wearables like glucose monitors and Apple Watches, more diagnostics can be done at home, reducing the need for hospital visits. Hospitals are also exploring prefabrication, building components off-site for quicker and more efficient assembly. It used to be that prefabricated racks and toilet rooms were fairly standard, now we are seeing larger scale fabrication of exam rooms and other components that truly impact the project delivery timeline.

Flexibility is another key trend. Hospitals are moving toward universal care rooms that can serve various patient needs, from Med-Surg to ICU. This allows hospitals to adapt quickly to changing demands, such as during a pandemic.