[1] The medical centre is affiliated with the University of Groningen and offers supraregional tertiary care to the northern part of the Netherlands.

The ground floor is designed so that visitors do not feel as if they are in a hospital - the space is airy, there is a lot of green, and the glass roofs are opened when the weather is fair.

The operating centre, intensive care units, and staff rooms are in the central part of the building.

The buildings are also built a 'City within the city' concept: by bringing the outside in, patients are able to continue to participate in society.

This is why the hospital has brought the outside world into its walls, including a bookshop, a hairdresser, a chemist, a pharmacy, cafés, and a travel agency.