Well, took me some years to try this game again. Mainly because first time I tried it out, I lost patience. And also because it appeared one General Diagnosis Office was not enough for the hospital to work efficiently. You know, deadlocks caused by too many patients coming after a while.

Right now I build two GD Offices, but something tells me sooner or later I will require more. So tell me - What is the absolute minimum of GD Offices a hospital must have after... like... level 5?

Isn't this tied to the skill of the GP?

Yes, and I pointed this out further down in my post.

For clarity, I am talking about a GP's Office (General Practitioner's Office) There exists no "General Diagnosis Office". Clearly one office is the absolute minimum, but I'm going to answer the question I think you're asking.

For the first year on any level, one GP's Office will be sufficient, though you should reserve space nearby for a second. This statement is subject to my way of playing however: I gear my GP's Offices for maximum capacity, that is, minimum turnaround time per patient, for efficiency and reputation reasons. There should be no situation in which more than three GP's Offices are required unless you play a level into oblivion, which can be more fun than promoting yourself.

Here's how to achieve this optimal Office performance: always staff it consultant-level doctors--with time in the Office their ability bar fills. Lay out your room pragmatically, that is, with maximum efficiency in mind, here's how: use a 5x5 room, door in the centre, chair in line with and facing the door, radiator behind chair, desk in the more visible corner, filing cabinet directly behind doctor's chair. Cheers!

There is General Diagnosis room. It is general examination... im not english so cant say for sure. GP or therapist office is who verbally examine patients and GD office is where they get basic diagnosis and doctor sight examine (+ hearing them).

OP did ask about GD but im not sure 100%. Most posts or parts of them here are about GP. GP is bare minim of 2 even at begining of the level. Receptionist is maximum of 2 and 1 on early mission. But it can be 2 on start as well. Better place them close to eafh other. And ofc close to/inside GP therapists corpus. Not required to place them in front (and careful you can block the path - place them as side not as front), you can make free central "square" zone like hall but in centre with 2 receptions and long corridors from them lead to GPs first then else Diagnostic rooms.
Hmm wait. With that scheme next to receptionist is diagnostic rooms and farest are GPs. It allow you to keep increase GP at the end of corpus if you faced need to increase them. Better keep same cabinets next to each others or placed one one opposite the other in same corridor section. In both cases you did increase size querry of cabinets (DOOR icon) or keep it default. In both case you increase it or keep you must do it same for EVERY-every hospital cabinets. If you feel you gonna forget do that for eafh keep all (i mean really all) cabinets at default.
I don't know if there is disadvantages of keeping querry size at 6 instead of maximum 10. I at some time get used to set each querry to maximum, never forget that. And so i do that for every cabinet+reception and for every same type cabinet.

So at start make reception farest in diagnosis corpus and 2 GP close to exit. In between of farest diagnosis rooms and exit-close GPs build cure cabinets that later with more money better move to new corpuses (new buildings). Or you can get credit at start of the level and initially planning each corspus. (easier way is temporary not so planning first scheme and them with money and research rebuild half of your hospital... or not easier? take credit at start count as HUGE balance decrease and you must pay it to the end of the year - but effecent bospital scheme make you earn money faster and patients not die before they reach cure office).

Theme Hospital reauire efficent schemes even more than X-com 1/2 require.

Better - after you get money to build new corpuses or with money credit at beginning - left one smalles corpus for staff-only. Research + classroom + Staff room. You better have only one office of this. Staff rest room as well. In case you need more - rebuild existed room to large scale. Staff room better have 1 to whole hospital and in farest corpus. You can easily find your lazy personal there and move them to work. And you get one corpus free of patients mean always clean.
Whenever you need more - rebuild old ward/staff rooms. Maybe later build more ward rooms, but staff is only ONE.

And now back to basic examine office called General Diagnosis room. I mentioned it in near thread (did every diagnostics needed) that exactly this one office at missions later stage got - even - rarely used. With increased diagnosis rooms and their efficency researched you easily got maximum diagnostic level with first most ultimate rooms.
You NEED as much as possible by money (upkeep salary) and space GP offices at later stages. You NO NEED two of else diagnostic rooms. No need for 2 General Diagnostic rooms for sure.

maybe better have 2 of Psychiatric office, ward office (with increased beds), Pharmacy office, operation office. Keep in mind that ward and psicho used as diagnostic and for cure (ward for operations room). Your diagnosed pations get died in querry waiting for newcomers patients who just start their diagnostics. And yes, TV syndrome are deadly disease too :)
Still i think better stick them close to each other. Even if you have as i suggest diagnostic and cure corpuses as 2 differ buildings.

So where to place them? I think in cure corpus. Cure offices should be easily accessible for emergencies. So i start cure corpus with toilets restroom, then... i dont know which better. Place diagnostic shared rooms in front or at farest of exit. At one point w psycho next to toilets reduce patients pathfinding for this overwhelmed offices (every patients go to diagnose from psychiatric +cure ones). You must have reduced paths for patients as many of them later go FAST DIE when they walk in and keep walk in your hospital (skull icon). Reduce quantity of diagnostic patients make clearer farest parts of cure corpus.

At other hand that scheme lead to 2 Pharmacy builded as FOURTH and FIFTH next to toilets, 2 psycho, 2 ward, 2 operational offices and else cure are even farest. Its still 2 psycho and 2 ward are EMERGENCY cure room as well, so its still no point to place them back as "less needed". So i guess i do right to place them in front.
In any case same type built next to each toher ALWAYS.

And no, unfortunatly YOU CANT DECIDE which office of ward/psycho are diagnostic and cure to build them in separate corpuses. They identical and work identically and so they must be next to each other.


Exact schemes depend on free space (which level). Idially all GPs go next to reception and at start of building. As dedicated corpus even more ideally. Make 5 corpuses infl staff are ideal minimum but possible start from mission 3 or 4. At first and second mission you must compose diagnostic and cure to two building and place reception when you can. First available building are smaller than second and inguess better make second as diagnostic one. You cant make perfect scheme at mission beginning even if you get money credit cause lack of researches needed to it. Make your own perfect schemes for end of each level and find your own best ways for beginning with rebuilding at mid-stage.