2 Ventura County Hospitals Plan Expansion

Two hospitals in eastern Ventura County are moving ahead with expansion plans, responding to population growth and greater demand for health care.

Simi Valley Hospital this week revealed more details of an ambitious plan that includes construction of a $35-million patient care wing.

And officials at Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks said it has accepted $120 million from its parent company for a previously announced new wing.

In some ways, the two facilities are bucking the trend in California, where low profits have kept hospitals from expanding. Only Riverside and San Bernardino counties with their quickly expanding populations are seeing much hospital growth, said Jim Lott, executive vice president at the Health Care Assn. of Southern California.

“The ability to raise revenue is the absolute key to any expansion plan,” he said. “Does the market warrant it?”

Lott said only a third of the hospitals in California are profitable. In Ventura County, Los Robles is the only one.

Simi Valley Hospital will add private rooms--about 30% to 50% larger than current ones--as part of a four-story addition. There still will be 168 beds, but patients will no longer be required to share rooms.

“We’re keeping up with the needs of our community,” hospital President Margaret Peterson said.

The hospital was built in 1964, and has not had any upgrades other than internal renovations since 1984. Hospital officials expect construction to begin in July, with the new patient wing to be finished within two years.

The first phase also will include specialized units for infants and those with heart and brain ailments. Hospital administrators hope to lay groundwork for future projects, including expanded emergency and operating rooms.

“This isn’t a one-time deal. This is something we can build upon,” Peterson said. “This is the beginning of much more to come.”

The hospital will receive $16 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for damage it sustained in the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Other money will come from the hospital’s parent, Adventist Health, and from fund-raising, Peterson said.

Building plans are still subject to approval by the state and the Simi Valley City Council.

In Thousand Oaks, Los Robles Hospital already has kicked off a $4.5-million project to double the size of its intensive care unit. Last year, the medical center completed a $6.5-million, 12,000-square-foot emergency facility with private rooms.

The hospital’s long-term plan is to add a new wing to the front of the hospital with dozens of private rooms and a multilevel parking structure. Its parent corporation, HCA, has allocated $120 million for the expansion.

The new patient wing will have 120 beds and a cardiovascular department. Eventually, the hospital will add an MRI unit, a diagnostic scanner used to detect brain tumors and other illnesses.