When the new Doctors’ Clinic in Silverdale starts receiving patients this month Jim and Susan Morss will be among the many people pleased with the building. The 56,000-square-foot, three-story building is among the many accomplishments of the couple, who own Bainbridge Island-based Morss Medical Architecture.

“We are very happy with the results,” said Linda Brown, CEO of The Doctors’ Clinic. “It’s a beautiful building, a modern state-of-the art facility that is nice for patients and employees.”

Morss Medical designed the exterior and the offices while AMB Development designed the ambulatory surgery and endoscopy sections, according to Brown. In addition to the ambulatory services, the new clinic’s expanded services will include physical therapy and full-service imaging, she said.

Brown noted the big windows as one of the highlights of the facility. For the Morsses, big windows are one of the signature features they try to utilize as much as possible.

“Susan will fight for windows at the end of corridors so patients have a touch with the outside,” Jim Morss said. “It seems like a small thing but it helps orient people.”

Windows in the waiting room, spacious staff lounges and patient rooms that are large enough so staff doesn’t bump into each other but small enough to save physicians thousands of extra steps over the years — these are some of the features the Morss Medical Architecture recommends to its clients. It’s wisdom that came through decades of experience and specializing in medical buildings.

“The medical industry is a need industry rather than a want one. Designing for a patient is more difficult than for someone shopping for a dress,” Morss said. “You have to make it comfortable and easy and convenient for the patient.”

Jim has been an architect for 30 years, while Susan’s specialty is interior design. They are both involved in the entire design process, and look at a project as a whole — not only as the finished building but the building complete with furniture and accessories, which is somewhat unique for an architectural firm. For the Morsses, however, it’s a perfect blend of creativity.

Jim and Susan worked for the same company several years ago, which brought them to Bellevue. Shortly after, they saw an opportunity to strike out on their own. They continued specializing in medical facilities. More than a year ago, they moved the office — and their home — to Bainbridge Island, attracted by its sense of community and its beauty. From their downtown office overlooking the waterfront, they design medical facilities and remodels for Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

Working for themselves, especially in a small business within a highly competitive industry, presents more vulnerabilities than a paycheck in a big company. But the pair wouldn’t trade their business for the stability. Their company has become part of their lifestyle and their dreams.

“It’s a wonderful experience,” Susan said. “It’s unique to get along together so well, and we’re always bouncing ideas off each other.”

The practice of medicine has changed tremendously over the last two or three decades, and medical architecture has changed accordingly. Buildings for one to two doctors are rare now, as physicians band together in bigger practices. The technology and new regulations like HIPPA have changed everything from how medical records are stored due to privacy concerns to how a room is designed to accommodate for more computers. It has also allowed smaller companies such as Morss Medical Architecture to be able to compete with the big guys, thanks to Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and other applications.

Closer to home, in Kitsap, the Morsses see changes coming in medical practice as well. “(The new Doctors Clinic) is changing the face of medicine in Bremerton and Silverdale,” Jim said. “It’s a vanguard of things to happen in Kitsap County — there will be more medical buildings centered around hospitals.”

But whatever the changes locally or nationally, the team is prepared to continue growing and evolving along with the industry they’re set to serve.