Each year, our community has grown at a fast pace. Last year was no different and 2008 is shaping up to continue on this track. Our swelling population means that more people than ever need the latest healthcare services. Our hospital has been anticipating these burgeoning needs and is helping to meet them by opening our new, three-story Surgery and Maternity Services building. Not only does this new, 72,000-square-foot wing expand our hospital's capacity to 189 beds, it also provides the latest equipment that our technologically advanced industry has to offer.


RCH…Expanding Healthcare

Our new building expands healthcare in a number of ways. It allows us to serve more patients than ever before and increases the types of healthcare services we provide. For example, our eight new surgery suites were designed with technology in mind. Each of them is larger than our previous operating rooms. Surgery can sometimes require as many as seven people in an operating room. Add that to the specialized equipment and monitors that are required and a surgery can get tight. We are grateful for our new space.

Nestled in the middle of our surgery suites is a central core area where clinicians and staff can easily access sterilization machines, surgery tools, bandages and other items necessary for surgery. Having centrally located supplies and equipment results in more efficient surgeries and reduces the amount of time patients must be under anesthesia. Similarly, our Pre-op/Post-op suite is an efficient department of beds that provide ample space for clinicians to assess patients before surgery and evaluate them after a procedure.

Our Maternal Child services have also benefited with an increase in space. If you or a loved one will be delivering a newborn at our hospital, you will have peace of mind knowing that Labor and Delivery, Post/Partum/Recovering, and special operating rooms for caesarean sections are all on the second floor. Couplet Care suites, where moms and infants enjoy their first days of life in the same room, are located on the third floor. In 2007, nearly 2,400 babies were welcomed into the world here where we had five labor and delivery rooms. Today, our 10 new labor and delivery rooms double our capacity. Our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was also expanded to serve as many as 17 of our most fragile patients at a time. We traditionally see about 200 infants in the NICU each year.


Designed With Comfort In Mind


When you visit Redlands Community Hospital you will see that our building is a beautiful addition to our campus. We knew we needed to do more than just increase the number of patients we served. We also wanted to increase their comfort level by creating an uplifting, healing environment. This benefits our patients as well as their family members and visitors; and our own physicians, nurses and staff.

We have paid attention to all the details, from the soothing color scheme, to warm golden accents that reflect our California setting. The natural light creates a home-like, positive atmosphere. We also made rooms more spacious whenever possible. The Couplet Care rooms are much larger than before, with a sleeping area for Dad or another family member. We even designed important equipment, such as baby’s first bassinette, to be hidden away within the room until needed. This allows plenty of room for loved ones and friends to visit during such a joyous occasion.


Five Years in the Making

A building as large and technologically advanced as our new wing doesn’t get built overnight. Five years ago, the planning and fundraising process began, followed by years of design, construction and licensing procedures. The actual mid-December move required extra staff to ensure that there was a seamless transition of care from one building to the other. That is no easy feat considering that many of our departments such as Labor and Delivery, and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, need to function 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All of the planning paid off as the move took place without a hitch.


The new building cost $47 million, a portion of which was raised by our hospital’s tireless Foundation team. Additional financial support was provided by grants from the Hedco and Weingart foundations, and several major donors who will have a room or department named in their honor. Our new building opened on December 17. I cannot think of a better holiday gift to have given our community.