UCSF Medical Center Set to Open in February 2015
SAN FRANCISCO — The University of California San Francisco (UC San Francisco) has announced that after more than 10 years of planning and construction, UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay will open on Feb. 1, 2015.
The $1.5 billion medical center will be located on UC San Francisco’s 60-acre biomedical research campus. It will be comprised of Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco, Betty Irene Moore Women’s Hospital and Bakar Cancer Hospital. The new facilities will include a 289-bed hospital complex with emergency and outpatient services.
On Feb. 1, the UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay will begin moving inpatients from the UCSF Parnassus and Mount Zion campuses. The medical center is strategically located in close proximity to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies in Mission Bay. The new cancer hospital, as an example, will be near the HCSF Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Building.
The new medical center will also have the only helipad in San Francisco that will help with the transportation of critically ill babies, children and pregnant women.
“UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay profoundly advances our ability to fulfill our mission as a public hospital, providing high-quality health care that meets the future needs of the entire Bay Area,” said Mark Laret, CEO, UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, in a statement. “By embedding clinical care within our research enterprise at Mission Bay, UCSF physicians and scientists in the forefront of cancer medicine, and women’s and children’s health will be able to more readily translate discoveries into next-generation therapies and cures.”
The hospitals will feature enhanced technology, including robotic couriers that will deliver linens, meals and medications. Private patient rooms will have interactive medical walls that will help patients communicate with families and clinicians. An imaging suite is being designed to help children calm their anxiety during an MRI by experiencing a virtual trolley ride or playing with animated animals.
The medical center will also feature 4.3 acres of green space and 1.2 acres of rooftop gardens. Design elements include interiors that showcase art and a public plaza, created in partnership with the city of San Francisco. The medical center is focused on energy efficiency, as well, and is targeting LEED Gold certification.
Design and construction for the major project is being handled by the Integrated Center for Design and Construction (ICDC), which began operations in 2009. More than 200 architects, engineers and contractors are working at a 12,000-square-foot command center in San Francisco. The project has brought together San Francisco-based architect Anshen & Allen and DPR Construction of Redwood City, Calif.
“The healing power of UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay extends beyond the hospitals’ walls, as clinicians and researchers work side by side to accelerate medical breakthroughs and transform the delivery of health care in this country,” said Sam Hawgood, MBBS, chancellor of UC San Francisco, in a statement. “It’s important to note that the hospital complex was built only through the generous philanthropic support of the Bay Area community, who share our vision of advancing health care across the world. We are greatly appreciative of their unwavering commitment to our mission over the past decade. ”