Los Robles Hospital to Add Beds, Services

Addressing both the concerns of the city and residents, the chief operating officer for Columbia Los Robles Hospital on Tuesday outlined the facility’s plans to serve the medical needs of the Conejo Valley.

At a meeting of the Thousand Oaks Mayor’s Business Roundtable, Gary Maier, said the closure of Westlake Hospital last year leaves Columbia Los Robles Hospital as the east county’s only comprehensive medical center. To effectively deal with the demands as the area’s only provider, Maier said, the hospital will expand to include more hospital beds and services.

Currently, the 185-bed hospital has a 75% average occupancy rate, compared to the national average of about 50%, he said.

“Even though every community wants its own hospital, there simply isn’t enough money for it, and it doesn’t make any sense,” Maier said. “I can say, however, that with these plans, we’ll be able to serve the Conejo Valley for some years to come.”

By December the hospital will have opened a new 71-bed facility on Via Merida in the old Charter Hospital that will house several wards, including a rehabilitation center and geriatric psychology unit, Maier said. Additional plans include the construction of a new emergency room at the hospital that will double the size of the one currently in use.

Columbia Los Robles also owns the property that formerly housed Westlake Hospital, but there are no plans to use it because of the cost of refurbishing and re-equipping the site.