cz

Policlinic

Date 1952–1954
Code Z10
Address Třída Tomáše Bati 3705, Zlín
Public transport Public transport: Poliklinika (TROL 1, 2, 3, 6, 10, 11, 12)
GPS 49.2209556N, 17.6553811E

In the 1950s, new hospitals and national health institutes began to be built en masse throughout the country. During this period, it was almost a stipulation that architects should design in the spirit of socialist realism (often abbreviated to "sorela"). Two main postulates for artistic creation were established. One was the unequivocal obligation to respect the Soviet experience, and the other was the need to seek the source of revival and beauty in tradition, national culture, and folk creativity. The new political system’s economic policy deliberately incorporated architecture into its services and formulated its own guidelines and conditions for it. The ideology of this period proclaimed functionalism an outdated and dubious path, typical of capitalism. The demands of dialectical materialism forced the establishment of principles for a new architectural style, which was to be achieved precisely by the method of socialist realism.
In the rationally-orientated Zlín (from January 1, 1949 Gottwaldov) there are only a few examples of the application of contemporary requirements to the spirit of this ideology. Among these is the policlinic building, then built as the District Medical Centre in Gottwaldov, west of the city centre, near the factory complex. The main architect was Miroslav Drofa, who collaborated on the project with his colleague Karel Kárník. The policlinic builds on the typified design, developed by Stavoprojekt in 1950 as the basis for "health centres for a district of 45,000 inhabitants," but this first implementation of the given type had to be adapted to the rising terrain of the building plot and the requirements of the investor. 
A reinforced concrete skeleton with monolithic ceilings and brick infills was chosen for the health centre structure. On the symmetrically-designed façade with two receding wings flanking the middle protruding part, the architect applied a combination of traditional Zlín face bricks and textured plaster. The railings on the partially-covered terraces on the first floor and on the fifth floor are made of prefabricated concrete elements. The first floor’s ceiling is at ground level, so the main entrance to the building is located on the second floor, with a large entrance hall, registration counter and lift. The architect placed the technical operations here as well as in the basement – storage rooms, archives, laundry, wiring, filing cabinets, etc. On the third floor there were doctors' practices in the middle section, the lung department in the western section and the children's surgeries in the eastern section. Both departments had separate entrances accessible through staircases and ramps. On the fourth floor there was an X-ray department, practices for specialists in the west wing and departments of surgery and gynaecology in the eastern wing. On the fifth floor there was a laboratory in the centre, administration in the western wing and dentist in the eastern wing. The sixth floor consisted of a superstructure in the middle section, with a lecture hall, a library and an elevator machine room. Selected areas were air-conditioned (TB department, X-ray, central laboratories, lecture hall, cloakrooms, etc.). The construction cost was set at CZK 8,200,000.
The new building of the District Medical Centre created the middle, main front of the planned park square. On its eastern side, the ČSAD building was designed by the architect Hynek Adamec (1957), which partially met the requirements of socialist realism. In 1964, the Stavoprojekt building designed by the architects Jiří Čančík and Miloš Totušek, closed this newly formed small park square on the western side.
Even today, the Zlín Policlinic offers comprehensive medical services after minor structural modifications. There are forty doctors of various specialisations in the practices of allergology, diabetology, genetics and diagnostics as well as gynaecology, surgery, neurology, orthopaedics, and eye and dental practices. A pharmacy and several smaller shops and services were set up on the ground floor. At the end of 2018, the building of the policlinic was bought by a private company. According to information provided by them, the building is to be renovated to the specifications of 1954. The plan is to repair the cladding in accordance with the surrounding buildings. Problems with parking around the clinic should also be addressed. The function of the building as health centre is to remain unchanged. 
 
 
LH