The paper proposes a reflection and a point of view on the design of the contemporary hospital and the architectures for health according to “vertical” or “horizontal” typologies. The aim is to identify in various configurations, the relationships between the quality of the spaces and specific requirements in relation to the most recent developments in medicine both from the organizational and functional points of view and the social component. The method consists in defining a framework of demanding and performance comparison of different hypotheses, supported by indirect and direct analysis of the outcomes, through an analysis matrix related to case studies, considered as best practices among the architectures for health.