Stroke Rehabilitation

Stroke is the most common cause of acquired disability, with around 20,000 cases each year in Switzerland. One in six people will experience a stroke in their lifetime, most often around the age of 75, when many live alone or with an equally elderly partner. Both mortality rate and rate of full recovery of stroke are around 10%, leaving the majority of post-stroke individuals with various degrees of impairment and dependency on lifelong care.

In the film Deux, two women Madeleine and Nina in their seventies have been in a secret romantic relationship for over twenty years. When Madeleine suffers a stroke, her life changes abruptly. After hospital treatment, she returns home in a wheelchair, dependent on daily care provided by her daughter and a live-in caregiver, while her lesbian partner remains outside the formal care system.

Rehabilitation unfolds in phases: firstly, acute hospital care in stroke units, then intensive therapy in in- or outpatient rehabilitation clinics, at last long-term recovery at home or in a care home. While early progress is rapid, independence often plateaus after the initial phases. For older patients, the loss of mobility is one of the most restrictive symptoms, emphasizing the need for environments that support continued rehabilitation in daily life.

The proposed project envisions the Parkhaus Hardturm transforming into care infrastructure that accommodates post-stroke individuals’ continued rehabilitation in daily life through collective housing.

The existing structure of the carpark will be opened by a central courtyard. At its core, a vertical sequence of shared rehabilitation spaces guides you upward to the bath, creating a generous path with double-height rooms and sightlines above and below. The public therapy bath on top will offer a space with warm water that helps relax tight muscles, reduces stiffness, while the buoyancy supports body weight, making movement easier and less painful.

Housing is oriented toward the southeast façade. The apartments offer flexible living arrangements for stroke survivors like Madeleine and their loved ones, with units directly connected to the shared rehabilitation spaces. Additional temporary apartments on the upper floor accommodate external caregivers and extended or chosen-family networks. Rooms, circulation spaces and balconies are designed accessible for wheelchairs and gurneys, with continuous handrails; generous entrance zones feature niches facing the courtyard for resting or spending time.

The existing façade has aged beautifully: the originally blue lacquer gradually shifted toward a lilac-pink tone due to photooxidation. As UV light and weathering cause the thin lacquer layers to break down, their surface properties change and the colour slowly fades.

Inspired by the phenomenon of material ageing, the roof of the distinct volume of the bath collects rainwater and leads it downwards the reused façade panels. When the panels are washed, water paths appear, briefly revealing traces of the original blue beneath.

Project by: Selina Frauenfelder

Teaching team: Teaching team: Anna Puigjaner, Dafni Retzepi, Ethel Baraona Pohl, Pol Esteve Castelló, Lisa Maillard, He Shen, He Yufei. In collaboration with BUK.

Master Thesis: Autumn 2025

Images: Luís Úrculo