Sequoia Hospital is a

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

Redwood City Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in the Bay Area of Northern California, approximately south of San Francisco and northwest of San Jose. The city's population was 84,292 according to the 2020 census. The Port of Redwo ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, US. It is operated by Dignity Health.

History

Founding

In 1938, a group of nine women led by Mary "Dove" Beeger appealed to the city council in Redwood City for a hospital to serve the communities of southern San Mateo County. The city council authorized a study that confirmed the lack of hospital facilities locally. But construction was delayed first by decisions to issue bonds to build a city hall and to build a library, and then by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1946, voters approved the creation of the Sequoia Hospital District. Construction of the hospital began in 1949 as one of the first

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

hospitals in California. The 106-bed hospital was dedicated on October 15, 1950 and the first patient admitted on October 25, 1950.

Merger

In 1995, the hospital was struggling with losses that resulted in layoffs. It lost $1.9 million in 1994 and $7.8 million in 1995. The hospital board sought partners for an affiliation or merger and received proposals from Adventist Health System/West Inc., Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. and Catholic Healthcare West. On March 20, 1996, the hospital board voted 4–1 to affiliate with the non-profit Catholic Healthcare West (rather than the for-profit Columbia/HCA). Ballot Measure H was put to Sequoia Hospital District voters, who approved the merger. The agreement called for the creation of a governing board for the hospital, with equal representation from Catholic Healthcare West and the Sequoia Hospital District and for CHW to pay $30 million to the district.

Rebuilding

After several hospitals were damaged or closed as a result of the

1994 Northridge earthquake The 1994 Northridge earthquake affected Greater Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1994, at 04:30:55 PST. The epicenter of the moment 6.7 () blind thrust earthquake was beneath the San Fernando Valley. Lasting approximately 8 seconds ...

, the state passed Senate Bill 1953, which required hospitals to meet new seismic standards. As a result, Sequoia Hospital explored the possibility of building a new hospital, possibly at a new location in Redwood City. However, in 2007, the hospital decided to construct the new building on its existing campus. On November 30, 2007, the Sequoia Healthcare District approved a funding plan for the new hospital in which Sequoia Hospital, Sequoia Healthcare District and CHW would each contribute $75 million toward the cost, with an additional $15 million to be raised by Sequoia Hospital Foundation. The plan called for CHW to take full ownership of the hospital, with half of the earnings over forty years to go to Sequoia Hospital District. The building plan includes a new hospital with 167 beds, an expanded emergency room, a new medical office building with outpatient surgery facilities and a four-story parking garage. Construction of the garage began in February 2008 and is expected to be complete by September 2009. The new medical office building is expected to be complete by the winter of 2011, while the new hospital building and all seismic upgrades are expected to be complete by the spring of 2013.

Medical services

The hospital is certified by the

Joint Commission The Joint Commission is a United States-based nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c) organization that accredits more than 22,000 US health care organizations and programs. The international branch accredits medical services from around the world. A majori ...

as a Primary

Stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

Center Program. The cardiac care department is highly ranked by HealthGrades, including: * Best in California for Coronary Interventional Procedures * HealthGrades 2008 Cardiac Care Excellence Award recipient * HealthGrades 2008 Cardiac Surgery Excellence Award recipient * Top 5% in the Nation for Overall Cardiac Services, Cardiology Services, and Coronary Interventional Procedures

References

External links

*
Sequoia Healthcare DistrictPrimary Stroke Center ProgramThis hospital in the CA Healthcare Atlas
A project by OSHPD