Stanford Breaks Ground on New Hospital

Stanford Hospital & Clinics celebrated the start of construction on a new hospital in Stanford, California Wednesday, commemorating the first step in creating a state-of-the art medical facility.

The facility will transform patient care, while focusing on delivering leading edge and coordinated care, according to Amir Dan Rubin, president and CEO of Stanford Hospital & Clinics.

"Advancing the way in which care is delivered requires state-of-the art facilities that are designed to provide patients with a healing environment and can accommodate new technologies as they become available," Rubin said. "We believe the new Stanford Hospital will be the world’s most advanced inpatient setting."

With $2 billion infused into this portion of the project by three key benefactors, crews will create a hospital that adds a net of 824,000 square feet to the medical campus, bringing the total future size to 2.2 million square feet.

Crews with heavy machinery have been demolishing parking structures and buildings for the past 47 days to make room for the new clinic. It will include 368 patient rooms, with 104 ICU rooms and 264 ACU rooms. A rooftop helipad will be installed, along with a new Level 1 Trauma Center that is three times the size of the existing Emergency Department. 

"The new Stanford Hospital will serve the local community, even as its benefits are felt well beyond it—in excellent patient care, the development of innovative therapies and treatments, and the education of tomorrow’s healthcare leaders," said John L. Hennessy, president of Stanford University. "It would not be possible without the collective efforts of many people—our local government, our generous donors, members of the Stanford family and our surrounding communities."

In June 2011, the City of Palo Alto approved the project, with an 8-0 vote, on the condition that Stanford allocate millions of dollars for community benefit.  Stanford also agreed to pay the City of Menlo Park $3.6 million to mitigate traffic concerns that arose during a review of the Environmental Impact Report. 

Additional aspects of the SUMC Renewal Project include work on Welch Road, replacement of School of Medicine facilities, and an expansion of the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, which is expected to conclude in 2016. The entire SUMC Renewal Project is expected to cost $5 billion. Three of the projects major funders are graduates of Stanford University.

Project managers expect the new hospital to open in 2018.  

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