News Release: Dignity Health California Hospital Medical Center to Construct Patient Care Tower as Centerpiece of Campus Expansion

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dignity Health California Hospital Medical Center (CHMC) announced today plans to construct a new patient care tower that will serve as the centerpiece of a $215 million campus expansion and modernization designed to keep up with the growing and diverse needs of the greater Los Angeles downtown community. The new 150,000-square-foot, four-story tower will provide added space, privacy and advanced medical technology while greatly enhancing the hospital’s capacity and accessibility for emergency, trauma and maternity services.

CHMC has played a major role in the growth, development and health of Los Angeles’ downtown area for more than 130 years, delivering care regardless of one’s background or circumstances. In fiscal year 2017 alone, the hospital provided $9.25 million in community benefit and charity care and an additional $18 million in grant and philanthropy-funded community health, wellness and family support programs.

“The new patient care tower is vitally important in helping us continue our mission and tradition of serving our unique patient populations and creating healthier communities,” says CHMC President Margaret R. Peterson, Ph.D. “This expansion, fueled by the latest in technology and innovation, will also enable us to attract top-level talent, plus accept more medical residents and nursing students, strengthening CHMC’s role as a major regional teaching hospital.”

The first floor of the new tower will house larger, state-of-the-art emergency and trauma departments including a 60 percent increase in the number of beds. CHMC currently operates the busiest private trauma center in Los Angeles, and last year its emergency department saw 85,000 patients in a space equipped to accommodate 55,000 visits. The new ER will streamline triage to evaluate patients more efficiently and effectively while providing dedicated space for trauma care with six large bays accommodating the most advanced equipment along with an imaging suite equipped with a CT scanner and other radiology equipment.

CHMC is also a cornerstone of maternity care in Los Angeles and home to 3,600 births a year. The new tower will house an enhanced neonatal intensive care unit, labor and delivery, and postpartum services and will bring new technologies, nursing efficiencies and family-bonding opportunities to families. The tower will feature private rooms and open rooms to accommodate multiple births, private postpartum rooms permitting family to stay with moms and babies overnight, private triage rooms where moms-to-be can be evaluated and cared for, and separate antepartum rooms providing comfort for patients who need close monitoring prior to delivery.

The top floor of the new tower will be reserved for future expansion. Additionally, the hospital’s campus expansion will include a new pediatrics unit on the sixth floor of the existing Tibbitts Tower, an emergency mental health observation center adjacent to the new ER, and a new multi-level parking structure with meeting and retail space on the ground floor.

“As the only hospital located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, California Hospital Medical Center is uniquely positioned to care for a very diverse and underserved population, but the unprecedented growth and transformation of our service area has put tremendous demands on our major service lines,” states Peterson. “The new tower will multiply and modernize our capabilities, helping to improve the health and well-being for all of downtown L.A. through improved efficiency, advanced technology and the power of humankindness.”

Peterson said that groundbreaking on the new tower is anticipated in the first quarter of 2019. The $215 million campus expansion will be funded through a $40 million investment from Dignity Health, a loan of up to $125 million secured by Dignity Health, and a capital campaign seeking a local philanthropic investment of $50 million.

About Dignity Health California Hospital Medical Center

Founded in 1887, Dignity Health California Hospital Medical Center is a 318-bed, acute care, nonprofit hospital located in downtown Los Angeles. The hospital offers a full complement of services including a Level II trauma center, the Los Angeles Center for Women’s Health, obstetrics and pediatric services, and comprehensive cardiac and surgical services. The hospital shares a legacy of humankindness with Dignity Health, one of the nation’s five largest healthcare systems. Visit dignityhealth.org/californiahospital for more information.