What are the goals of the expansion of Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital?
Posie Carpenter: This hospital is no longer just a “feeder” facility for Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood; it is an integral part of UCLA Health System. As such, we have had to evolve from what began as a community-based hospital to one that, while still very much a part of our community here in Santa Monica, is an essential component of an academic medical system. In addition to providing excellent primary and secondary care, our hospital now provides the highest level of tertiary care. We have done a 180-degree transformation in the past five years. While the building of our new facilities moves toward completion next year, we are concurrently developing a master plan for the next five-to-10 years to ensure that we fully outfit this campus to meet the mission of UCLA Health System. We will need to design more teaching space, physician-support space and office space to support outstanding patient care. Some services have moved from the medical campus in Westwood to Santa
