UC San Diego Health is the academic health system of the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, California. It is the only academic health system serving San Diego and has one of three adult

Level I trauma center A trauma center, or trauma centre, is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major trauma, major traumatic injuries such as Falling (accident), falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. The term "tra ...

s in the region. In operation since 1966, it comprises three major hospitals: UC San Diego Medical Center in Hillcrest,

Jacobs Medical Center Jacobs Medical Center is a teaching hospital on the University of California San Diego, University of California, San Diego campus in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego. Along with the UC San Diego Medical Center, Hillcrest, it serves as a fl ...

La Jolla La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood in San Diego, California, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. The climate is mild, with an average daily temperature o ...

, and East Campus Medical Center at UC San Diego Health in East County. The La Jolla campus also includes the

Moores Cancer Center The Rebecca and John Moores Cancer Center is the region's only NCI-designated Cancer Center, part of UC San Diego Health and affiliated with the University of California, San Diego. It is supported, in part, by the National Cancer Institute T ...

, Shiley Eye Institute, Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center, and Koman Family Outpatient Pavilion, and the health system also includes several outpatient sites located throughout

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its border with Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634; it is the second-most populous ...

. UC San Diego Health works closely with the university's

School of Medicine A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

and Skaggs School of Pharmacy to provide training to medical and pharmacy students and advanced clinical care to patients. It is the official health system of the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

and

UC San Diego Tritons The UC San Diego Tritons are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of California, San Diego. The Tritons compete in NCAA Division I as a member of the Big West Conference (BWC). ...

Hospitals

UC San Diego Medical Center at UC San Diego Health

Hillcrest Medical Center at UC San Diego Health is the first of three primary hospitals for the

University of California, San Diego School of Medicine The University of California, San Diego School of Medicine is the graduate medical school of the University of California, San Diego, a public land-grant research university in La Jolla, California. It was the third medical school in the Univer ...

. The region's first academic medical center offers both primary care and specialized services, including surgery, diagnosis and management of genetic disease, neurology, orthopedics, oncology, and the Sleep Medicine Center. The 381-bed hospital at Hillcrest is home to the San Diego Regional Burn Center, San Diego County's only academic Level One Trauma Center, a Comprehensive Stroke Center, Poison Center, Hyperbaric Medicine Center, and the National Institutes of Health-designated Clinical Research Center. The Hillcrest campus also includes the Owen Clinic for HIV care to men, women and children.

Jacobs Medical Center

Jacobs Medical Center opened on November 20, 2016. It is the second component of UC San Diego Health's two-campus strategy and provides specialized quaternary care not available elsewhere in San Diego County. The 364-bed advanced medical center is divided into four separate pavilions: Thornton Pavilion, Vassiliadis Pavilion (floors 2–3), Foster Pavilion (floors 4–6), and Rady Pavilion (floors 8–10). The A. Vassiliadis Family Pavilion for Advanced Surgery includes intraoperative

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to generate pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes inside the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and rad ...

machines and the only Restrictive Spectrum Imaging facility in the United States. The Pauline and Stanley Foster Pavilion for Cancer Care houses a blood and marrow transplant program jointly operated by UC San Diego Health and

Sharp Healthcare Sharp HealthCare is a not-for-profit regional health care group based in San Diego, California. Sharp includes four acute care hospitals, three specialty hospitals, and three affiliated medical groups. It has approximately 2,700 affiliated physi ...

, the floor for which is completely pressurized and filtered allowing patients to roam freely. The Rady Pavilion for Women and Infants includes a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, eight labor rooms, 32 private postpartum rooms, and a three-room midwifery birth center. Each of the hospital's private rooms is equipped with an Apple iPad for controlling lighting, checking medical records, and contacting care providers. The facility is named for Joan and Irwin Jacobs in recognition of a $75 million gift they made to support its construction.

Thornton Pavilion

The John M. and Sally B. Thornton Pavilion and Perlman Medical Offices opened in the summer of 1993 as the standalone Thornton Hospital. John Alksne, a neurosurgeon and then- dean of the School of Medicine, performed the first surgery at this hospital. It was a delicate brain operation. It is located on the

UC San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Sc ...

campus in San Diego, California. It is a 119-bed general medical-surgical facility that offers a full range of services, including

surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

cardiology Cardiology () is the study of the heart. Cardiology is a branch of medicine that deals with disorders of the heart and the cardiovascular system. The field includes medical diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery di ...

endocrinology Endocrinology (from ''endocrine system, endocrine'' + ''wikt:-logy#Suffix, -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the ...

neurology Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine) , medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous syst ...

orthopedics Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics (American and British English spelling differences, alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgic ...

oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγ ...

reproductive medicine Reproductive medicine is a branch of medicine concerning the male and female reproductive systems. It encompasses a variety of reproductive conditions, their prevention and assessment, as well as their subsequent treatment and prognosis. Reprodu ...

pulmonary medicine Pulmonology (, , from Latin ''pulmō, -ōnis'' "lung" and the Greek suffix "study of"), pneumology (, built on Greek πνεύμων "lung") or pneumonology () is a medical specialty that deals with diseases involving the respiratory tract.

and

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

. In 2016, the hospital was consolidated into the Jacobs Medical Center hospital complex.

East Campus Medical Center at UC San Diego Health

East Campus Medical Center at UC San Diego Health was purchased from Prime Healthcare Services on December 12, 2023. It aims to provide enhanced emergency care units, as well as access to a wider variety of behavioral health and psychiatry services.

Specialty centers

Moores Cancer Center

Established in 1979, the Rebecca and John Moores UC San Diego Cancer Center is the region's only

NCI-designated Cancer Center NCI-designated Cancer Centers are a group of 73 cancer research institutions in the United States supported by the National Cancer Institute. Three designations are recognized: ''Comprehensive Cancer Centers'', ''Clinical Cancer Centers'' and ''B ...

. It provides outpatient care for more than 200 cancer types and is a regional center for cancer research and clinical trials of the most promising cancer therapies.

Shiley Eye Institute

UC San Diego Shiley Eye Institute provides comprehensive eye care services, from basic eye exams to advanced diagnostic tests and sophisticated surgery. Eye care services offered at Shiley Eye Institute include cataract surgery, cornea transplants, glaucoma diagnosis and treatment, low vision services, neuro-ophthalmology, optometry and contact lens service, pediatric ophthalmology, plastic surgery, refractive surgery, retina care, and trauma repair. It also houses the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Retina Center and Hamilton Glaucoma Center. The Abraham Ratner Children's Eye Center is immediately adjacent to the Shiley building.

Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center

The Sulpizio Family Cardiovascular Center provides ambulatory, clinical, and inpatient heart and stroke care in one central location. Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center is the region's first academic-based facility to combine all heart and vascular-related services, programs and technology under one roof. It is connected by footbridges to Jacobs Medical Center and the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute, a 311,000 gross square feet, $269 million laboratory building. The emergency department for the La Jolla campus is housed in the Sulpizio building, with 22 outpatient beds and 54 acute care beds.

Research

UC San Diego is one of the most active health science research institutes in the country. Of the $1.2 billion it received in research funding in FY2018, $686 million was dedicated to health sciences research at UC San Diego Health medical centers and the School of Medicine. Several pioneering medical innovations have been made by UC San Diego researchers, such as the development of the chemotherapy drug

cetuximab Cetuximab, sold under the brand name Erbitux, is an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor medication used for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer and head and neck cancer. Cetuximab is a chimeric (mouse/human) monoclonal a ...

, the use of

gene therapy Gene therapy is Health technology, medical technology that aims to produce a therapeutic effect through the manipulation of gene expression or through altering the biological properties of living cells. The first attempt at modifying human DNA ...

in the treatment of congenital defects, the discovery of

insulin Insulin (, from Latin ''insula'', 'island') is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreatic islets encoded in humans by the insulin (''INS)'' gene. It is the main Anabolism, anabolic hormone of the body. It regulates the metabol ...

resistance as a cause of

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

, the understanding of genetic blood disorders such as

sickle cell disease Sickle cell disease (SCD), also simply called sickle cell, is a group of inherited Hemoglobinopathy, haemoglobin-related blood disorders. The most common type is known as sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell anemia results in an abnormality in the ...

, the link between

vitamin D deficiency Vitamin D deficiency or hypovitaminosis D is a vitamin D level that is below normal. It most commonly occurs in people when they have inadequate exposure to sunlight, particularly sunlight with adequate ultraviolet B rays (UVB). Vitamin D def ...

and certain cancers, the first human trials of robotically assisted

laparoscopic surgery Laparoscopy () is an operation performed in the abdomen or pelvis using small incisions (usually 0.5–1.5 cm) with the aid of a camera. The laparoscope aids diagnosis or therapeutic interventions with a few small cuts in the abdomen.Medli ...

, the development of the first oral drug for treating

interstitial cystitis Interstitial cystitis (IC), a type of bladder pain syndrome (BPS), is chronic pain in the Urinary bladder, bladder and pelvic floor of unknown cause. Symptoms include urinary urgency, feeling the need to urinate right away, urinary frequency, ...

called Elmiron, the demonstration of

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

latency, the link between the p53 gene and

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and h ...

, the identification of the genetic basis for familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome, the discovery of an early warning sign for

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

, the connection between inflammation and cancer, the use of

green fluorescent protein The green fluorescent protein (GFP) is a protein that exhibits green fluorescence when exposed to light in the blue to ultraviolet range. The label ''GFP'' traditionally refers to the protein first isolated from the jellyfish ''Aequorea victo ...

as a surgical and research aid, the nation's first

sleeve gastrectomy Sleeve gastrectomy or vertical sleeve gastrectomy, is a surgical weight-loss procedure, typically performed laparoscopically, in which approximately 75 - 85% of the stomach is removed, along the greater curvature, which leaves a cylindrical, or ...

, and the discovery of a potential treatment for chronic lymphomatic leukemia called Cirmtuzumab. The health system coordinates its activities closely with the

UC San Diego School of Medicine The University of California, San Diego School of Medicine is the graduate medical school of the University of California, San Diego, a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in La Jolla, California. It wa ...

as well as the university as a whole. In particular, clinical and

translational research Translational research (also called translation research, translational science, or, when the context is clear, simply translation) is research aimed at translating (converting) results in basic research into results that directly benefit humans ...

are important for both entities to advance the quality of patient care. UC San Diego Health conducts several hundred clinical studies per year at its hospitals and clinics. In 2016, the university opened the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute (ACTRI) building, which brings together professors in

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions, and its disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, ...

molecular biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

bioengineering Biological engineering or bioengineering is the application of principles of biology and the tools of engineering to create usable, tangible, economically viable products. Biological engineering employs knowledge and expertise from a number ...

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...

, and

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

to solve new and complex medical questions. The ACTRI also enables collaboration with the

Jacobs School of Engineering The Irwin and Joan Jacobs School of Engineering is an undergraduate and graduate-level engineering school offering Bachelor of Science, BS, Bachelor of Arts, BA, Master of Engineering, MEng, Master of Science, MS, Master of Advanced Study, MAS ...

, the

Salk Institute for Biological Studies The Salk Institute for Biological Studies is a scientific research institute in the La Jolla community of San Diego, California. The independent, non-profit institute was founded in 1960 by Jonas Salk, the developer of the polio vaccine; among th ...

Sanford Burnham Prebys Sanford Burnham Prebys is a nonprofit biomedical research institute located in La Jolla, California. The institute conducts basic research and translational research focused on human disease. Research at the institute focuses on cancer, neurode ...

, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, the

J. Craig Venter Institute The J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) is a non-profit genomics research institute founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph.D. in October 2006. The institute was the result of consolidating four organizations: the Center for the Advancement of Ge ...

, and

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...

. Its building is connected by a footbridge to Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center and the Jacobs Medical Center complex. In addition to this, UC San Diego Health Sciences (the body which oversees both the hospital and school of medicine) runs the following research centers:

Regional affiliations

UC San Diego Health shares doctors and care providers with two other hospital systems in the region. In 2015, it entered a long-term management agreement with El Centro Regional Medical Center in

El Centro El Centro ( Spanish for "The Center") is a city and county seat of Imperial County, California, United States. El Centro is the most populous city in the Imperial Valley, the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the co ...

, the county seat of

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

. Under the terms of this agreement, ECRMC patients have access to specialized facilities operated by UC San Diego Health in the city. Doctors also have access to training and continuing medical education through UC San Diego School of Medicine, and UC administrators will continually monitor the operational needs of the remote medical center. UC San Diego Health participates in a similar program with the

Tri-City Medical Center Tri-City Medical Center (Tri-City or TCMC), founded in 1961, is a full-service, acute-care public hospital in Oceanside, California. Located 40 miles north of San Diego, Tri-City serves three major cities in the North County section of San Diego ...

community hospital in

Oceanside Oceanside may refer to: Places United States *Oceanside, California ** Oceanside Transit Center *Oceanside, New York Oceanside is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in the southern part of the town of Hempst ...

. The partnership is expected to help Tri-City improve patient outcomes and reduce its readmission rate. Research affiliations of the health system include external physicians and researchers connected through the aforementioned Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute. In addition, UC San Diego scientists are affiliated with the CIRM-funded

Sanford Consortium The Sanford Consortium is a non-profit biomedical research institute in La Jolla, California. It was formed from a collaboration between the Burnham Biomedical Research Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Scripps Research, La Joll ...

. The Sanford Consortium is a stem cell research partnership between UC San Diego, the

Scripps Research Scripps Research is a nonprofit American medical research facility that focuses on research and education in the biomedical sciences. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the institute has over 170 laboratories employing 2,100 scientists, tec ...

, La Jolla Institute for Immunology,

Takeda Pharmaceutical The is a Japanese multinational pharmaceutical company. It is the third largest pharmaceutical company in Asia, behind Sinopharm and Shanghai Pharmaceuticals, and one of the top 20 largest pharmaceutical companies in the world by revenue (t ...

and

. It is housed in a building adjacent to Salk, UC San Diego, and Torrey Pines Gliderport and performs basic and preclinical stem cell and regenerative medicine research. Non-medical affiliations of the health system include the

and the

San Diego Metropolitan Transit System The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) is a public transit service provider for San Diego County, California. The agency operates a transit system that includes the San Diego MTS bus system, San Diego Trolley, and Rapid (San Diego), Rap ...

. In 2015, UC San Diego Health spent $30 million for a 30-year naming rights deal to the Blue Line operated by San Diego Trolley, Inc. The deal changed the line's name to the UC San Diego Blue Line and granted UC San Diego the right to wrap three trolleys with advertising. It resulted in the renaming of two trolley stations: the Voigt Drive station opened as

UC San Diego Health La Jolla station UC San Diego Health La Jolla station is a San Diego Trolley station located on the University of California, San Diego, UC San Diego East Campus, which includes the UC San Diego Health La Jolla campus of hospitals and medical facilities and the ...

, and the Pepper Canyon station was renamed to UC San Diego Central Campus station.

Clinics

UC San Diego Health operates outpatient clinics throughout San Diego County. There are multiple locations in La Jolla, Hillcrest and

Encinitas Encinitas (Spanish language, Spanish for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County (San Diego area), North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. Located in Southern California, it is approximately north of San Di ...

. It also has clinics in

downtown San Diego Downtown San Diego is the central business district of San Diego, California, the eighth largest city in the United States. It houses the major local headquarters of the city, county, state, and federal governments. The area comprises seven d ...

Chula Vista Chula Vista ( ; , ) is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. It is the second-most populous city in the San Diego metropolitan area, the seventh-most populous city in Southern California, the 15th-most populous city in the ...

Kearny Mesa Kearny Mesa is a community in the central part of San Diego, California. It is bounded by State Route 52 to the north, Interstate 805 to the west, Aero Drive to the south, and Interstate 15 to the east. Adjacent communities include Serra Mesa, ...

, Sorrento Valley,

Scripps Ranch Scripps Ranch is a community of San Diego, California, in the northeastern part of the city. It is located east of Interstate 15, north of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, and west of Poway. Its ZIP Code is 92131. Scripps Ranch is an inland bed ...

, Rancho Bernardo,

Vista Vista may refer to: Software *Windows Vista, the line of Microsoft Windows client operating systems released in 2006 and 2007 * VistA, (Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture) a medical records system of the United States ...

, Eastlake, and Temecula.

New facility and planned expansions

In 2018, UC San Diego Health opened the new 156,000-square-foot Koman Family Outpatient Pavilion in La Jolla. The facility includes eight surgery suites, basic and advanced imaging, physical therapy and pain management, as well as infusion and apheresis services. Additionally, long-range plans are underway to modernize and expand UC San Diego Medical Center in Hillcrest. The Hillcrest hospital will be completely renovated or replaced on the same site before 2030, when it will fail to meet seismic safety standards. UC San Diego Health was also in the process of approving a joint powers agreement with

North County North County is a region in the northern area of San Diego County, California. It is the second-most populous region in the county (after San Diego), with an estimated population of 869,322. North County is well known for its affluence, especially ...

to add to their network of hospitals. It was expected to join UC San Diego Health's network sometime in 2024 if the

Regents of the University of California The Regents of the University of California (also referred to as the Board of Regents to distinguish the board from the corporation it governs of the same name) is the governing board of the University of California (UC), a state university sys ...

approved the partnership. UC San Diego Health aimed to expand pregnancy & delivery programs, as well as gynecology for the hospital. The hospital was set to be renamed to UC San Diego Health – Tri-City if the partnership would have been approved. UC San Diego Health ultimately stopped negotiations after failing to reach an agreement with Tri-City

References

External links

UC San Diego Health

This hospital in the CA Healthcare Atlas
A project by OSHPD {{DEFAULTSORT:Ucsd Medical Center Hospital networks in the United States Academic health science centres NCI-designated cancer centers Medical and health organizations based in California