Basem Hammami's headshot

Basem Hammami

CSI, CDT, CCCA
Associate Principal, Health, Dallas

Though he was born in Germany, Basem grew up “everywhere” as his mechanical engineer father brought his family around the world managing large projects. It was in Italy, spending time with his artist-architect uncle that Basem got hooked on design. His training in Saudi Arabia emphasized technical expertise and the idea that design serves the three P’s: people, process, and place. In other words, no decision can be made lightly. This primed Basem well for the complexity and gravity of healthcare architecture and for leadership on one of our largest projects, the Children’s Health and UT Southwestern New Pediatric Campus.

Basem has focused on healthcare for decades—specializing in radiation oncology suites and pediatric hospitals—working across continents and from early planning through closeout. He loves the technicality of the work, but he’s equally inspired by the human side. Interested in the nuances in the social fabric of different cities, he’s insatiably curious about people and passionate about the art of caring for them through the built environment.

Say hello to Basem
Basem sitting on a stone wall at the Great Wall of China, with visitors walking along the historic path and green hills in the background.
Basem visiting the Great Wall while on a project in China
I have a lot of respect for other building types—and I’ve loved doing them—but healthcare architecture is unique. The stakes are high and the stakes are human. There’s no question of motivation.
Basem, with a volunteer badge, poses against a hospital wall
Expertise is a Living Thing

Healthcare institutions—and healthcare architects—agree on a core aspirational concept called the “triple aim”: improving community health, improving the patient experience, and reducing the cost of care. Over time, a fourth aim was added: taking care of healthcare providers. And more recently, a fifth: improving health equity. Today’s “quintuple aim” guiding society’s health systems keeps Basem inspired for the future. Each goal spotlights a new dimension of human need worth designing for, and each dimension gives architects’ work more potential to help. What might be next?

fun fact

Basem loves art; by noon on the very day he moved to North Texas, he was walking through exhibits in the DMA.

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