Prognosis good for hospital expansion




BILL SPARKESAcorn NewspaperROOM WITH  A VIEW—Patrick  Smith,  director  of  plant  operations,  observes  a  large  cranemaneuvering on the construction site at Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks. Work on the new200,000-square-foot patient wing is expected to finish in late 2006 and will cost $120 million.

BILL SPARKESAcorn NewspaperROOM WITH A VIEW—Patrick Smith, director of plant operations, observes a large cranemaneuvering on the construction site at Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks. Work on the new200,000-square-foot patient wing is expected to finish in late 2006 and will cost $120 million.


By Daniel Wolowiczdanielw@theacorn.com

This week marks the one-year

anniversary of the groundbreaking

for Los Robles Hospital’s new

200,000-square-foot patient wing,

which includes a new entrance and

lobby. The renovation is on budget, and the building is on schedule to open in December 2006,

hospital officials said.

The $120-million addition will

nearly double the hospital’s total

square footage and will feature an

additional 90 beds.

Once completed, Los Robles

will be the largest hospital in Ventura County with 286 beds.

“We’re really excited about

(the new wing),” said Dr. Bernard

Klein, chief operating officer and

medical director for Los Robles

Hospital. “It’s what the community needs and deserves, and it

will help us significantly improve

our ability to provide safe, quality care.”

The facility will house more

labor and delivery rooms, expand

the neonatal intensive care unit

and will also include an entire

floor dedicated to women’s and

children’s health services.

Klein said the new wing will

allow him to make many of the

semi-private rooms in the hospital

private.

Kris Carraway-Bowman, head

of marketing for the hospital, said

a number of other departments will

benefit from the additional space.

She said the pharmacy, as well as

the oncology and cardiovascular

departments, are a few of the services set for expansion once construction is completed.

The renovation, which has

been in development since 2000,

is a response to the needs of the

growing population in the Conejo

Valley. Since the hospital’s opening in 1968, the valley’s population has jumped from 30,000 residents to 150,000. Los Robles is the

only full-service hospital in the

Conejo Valley.

According to hospital records,

Los Robles had 2,300 inpatients

during its first year. In 2004, the

hospital admitted more than

14,000 patients.

Because the wing now occupies the hospital’s old parking lot,

a new, 520-space parking structure

with helipad was completed last

year.

Kitchell Contractors, a Phoenix-based company, is handling

construction. Hayes and Oakley

Architects designed the building.

Both companies were contracted

by Hospital Corporation of

America, Los Robles’ parent company.

Jim Pullen, head of construction, said work crews are currently

erecting the building’s steel frame.

Particular health precautions are

being taken during construction to

help maintain a sterile environment inside the hospital, he said.

Pullen also said his staff has

been extra-cautious with truck deliveries because of the relatively

“tight” piece of property the new

wing occupies. To help with safety

on the surrounding streets, flag

crews are being used to direct

trucks.

The new wing will also feature

two additional emergency generators. Currently, the hospital has

one.


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