SAN DIEGO, CA – After nearly three years of construction, the new Kaiser Permanente San Marcos Medical Center opened its doors to patients in San Diego County.
The seven-story, 433,000-square-foot facility expands access to award-winning health care for the county’s 636,000 Kaiser Permanente members.
Located in the heart of San Marcos, California, the new facility adds a third medical center to Kaiser Permanente’s San Diego service area, complementing San Diego Medical Center and Zion Medical Center. It also brings the number of Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Southern California to 16.
“San Marcos Medical Center brings our evidence-based care delivered through a facility that is nationally recognized for its environmental stewardship. With state-of-the-art technology, our team of physicians, nurses and staff are dedicated to delivering an exceptional medical quality and care experience,” said Michelle Gaskill-Hames, interim president of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals of Southern California and Hawaii.
Ramin Davidoff, executive medical director of Southern California Permanente Medical Group and co-chief executive officer of The Permanente Federation, said the center was designed from a holistic, patient-centered point of view.
The new complex features a full 24-hour emergency department with 39 private treatment areas, eight operating rooms and capacity for 206 individual interactive patient rooms.
Specialty services include an intensive care unit, interventional radiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, urology, nephrology, orthopedics, a robotic surgery program, maternal and child health services and a neonatal intensive care unit.
Patient rooms at San Marcos Medical Center feature a 65-inch flat-screen display that offers patients bedside access to on-demand education, room controls, room service, Internet and entertainment. An integrated video visitation platform allows physicians to virtually check on their patients as needed. In addition, each room is equipped with a special lighting system that mimics the natural rhythms of daylight, a feature that enhances health and well-being.
The campus offers patients and visitors a variety of spaces to find tranquility and respite, such as a healing garden, a meditation room and landscaped paths.
The new hospital also achieved LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. In doing so, San Marcos Medical Center becomes the third hospital in California to earn Platinum certification.
The building uses state-of-the-art technologies to produce its own electricity, heating and cooling. Native plants and an efficient drip irrigation system help save 400,000 gallons of water per month, the equivalent of the monthly consumption of 1,000 homes.
Flooring, insulation and furnishings are made of low-emitting materials to improve indoor air quality.
In addition, the San Marcos Medical Center will provide more than 1,000 new permanent jobs, helping to boost the economic vitality of North San Diego County.
