New Hospital Debuts at Stanford University
By Eric Althoff
PALO ALTO, Calif.—A new hospital has opened at Stanford University, the storied institution of higher learning located in Northern California’s Silicon Valley. The Stanford Hospital, sited on the Stanford University Medical Center (SUMC), broke ground in 2013.
The 824,000-square-foot medical building opened its doors on Nov. 17, admitting 200 patients across a new skyway that connects it to the existing hospital, the university announced. Starting at 7:00 in the morning that day, the new facilities were gradually opened for business, including the brand-new Marc Andreessen and Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen Emergency Department. (The hospital’s older ER will now be solely for pediatric patients.)
Hundreds of patients were relocated to the new hospital on the day of unveiling, starting at 9:00, with one of the hospital’s administrators estimating a new patient was moved into the new hospital every four minutes. The work took several hours and required over 1,600 healthcare workers.
In a statement released by the university, Stanford Health Care President and CEO David Entwistle said he was excited the updated healthcare building is now accepting patients.
“I am also grateful to our incredible employees who went above and beyond to make this a seamless transition for our patients,” Entwistle said.
The new hospital has been under design and planning for a decade, with Rafael Viñoly Architects of New York working in concert with Lee, Burkhart, Liu Inc. of the Bay Area on the project. The latter firm designed the bridge and tunnel to connect the old and new facilities. Clark Construction Group-California LP and McCarthy Building Companies Inc. jointly broke ground on the project in May 2013.
The new Stanford Hospital is the only Level 1 trauma center in the San Francisco-San Jose corridor, the university announced. In its seven-story structure, the hospital will offer 368 private patient rooms and 28 operating rooms. Its emergency department is double the size of the older building, the university said.
“Welcoming the first patients to the new Stanford Hospital marks a major milestone in our precision health vision,” Lloyd Minor, the dean of Stanford School of Medicine, said in a statement at the unveiling. “In this world-class healthcare facility, we will not only treat disease, we will predict, prevent and cure it. … After a decade of planning and construction, I’m excited that the new hospital is open and ready to advance the health and wellness of our surrounding communities and people around the world.”
“This new hospital will be a place for firsts,” added Entwistle in another statement released by the university. “New discoveries will be made here. New procedures will be performed. And through this state-of-the-art facility, we will revolutionize the way patient care is delivered at Stanford.”
The Stanford Hospital is just one part of the overall SUMC Renewal Project. Other components include expanding the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and renovating the Hoover Pavilion.
The older existing hospital will continue to remain in operation and is being renovated to provide better private rooms for patients.