Facts and figures on the new hospital

Last year, a 52-acre parcel atop Citracado Parkway on the western edge of Escondido near I-15 was the biggest construction site in the United States. Now, it is home to a 740,000-square-foot, 11-story “hospital of the future.”

When Palomar Medical Center opens Aug. 19 — after nearly 4½ years of construction and more than a decade of planning — it will be the first new hospital in North County in more than 30 years.

Community members can get an inside look at the hospital during an open house Saturday that includes self-guided tours.

Here are some facts, figures and other trivia about the region’s new medical center, and, if you make it to the festivities, some details to look for:

Milestones

• June 2012: Helicopter test landings take place atop the helipad on the 11th story.

• April 2012: Construction is completed; training and moving of furniture and equipment begin.

• November 2010: Green roof planting begins.

• December 2007: Groundbreaking is held for the new hospital.

• November 2004: Voters approve bond measure to help fund the hospital.

• February 1950: Palomar Memorial Hospital opens with 37 beds in downtown Escondido.

Sizable figures

• 740,000 square feet in building size.

• 11 stories tall.

• More than 800 parking spaces.

• 17 elevators.

• 1.5 acres of “green roof,” the largest of its kind in Southern California.

• 3 terraces on every patient floor.

• 288 private, single-patient rooms.

• 360 ­patient beds in future expansion.

• 50 emergency and trauma treatment rooms.

• 12 operating rooms.

• 320 square feet for patient rooms, including family space and 45-square-foot private bathroom.

Construction, by the numbers

DPR Construction used:

• 25 million pounds of structural steel.

• 5 million feet of electrical cable.

• 25,000 linear feet of pneumatic tube.

• 38,000 cubic yards of concrete.

Hospital cost

• $956 million ­hospital price tag.

• Funded in part by a $496 million bond measure passed by voters in 2004.

• $23.50 per $100,000 in assessed property value is the annual cost of repaying the bond for residents in the district.

Caregivers & Patients

• 1,700 employees at the new hospital.

• Up to 400 new employees to be hired in the district.

• 100,000 annual patient capacity for the new emergency department.

• 68,000 expected number of emergency department patients the first year.

• 1,250 annual trauma cases.

• 80 hours of training for clinical employees before working at the new hospital.

Palomar Health district

• 850 square miles.

• 507,000 residents in the primary service area of inland North County.

• 2,200 square miles, the size of Palomar Health’s trauma district. Palomar Medical Center is the only trauma center in North County.

Moving Day

The morning of Aug. 19, 18 ambulances will be used to move an estimated 135 patients roughly four miles west from the old downtown campus on East Valley Parkway to the new hospital. Each transfer is expected to take up to one hour, from bed to bed.

In case of emergency

The downtown emergency room will close at 7 a.m. Aug. 19, and open at the same time on Citracado Parkway at the new hospital. Emergency department signs downtown will be covered and signage at the new hospital will be uncovered. Hospital officials are working with city officials to change directional signage. “We don’t expect any gap in service and have coordinated with all emergency service providers,” Chief Administrative Officer Gerald Bracht said.

Family matters

All patient rooms include a “family zone” adjacent to the window. It includes a sleeper sofa and privacy curtain. “In this building we encourage our families to stay with us,” said Lorie Shoemaker, chief nurse executive.

Nurse-patient connections

All patient rooms are identical in standard and layout; no matter what room a nurse is working in, all of the equipment and fixtures will be in the same place. Patient floors won’t have a centralized nurse station and nurses will be closer to the bedside with “alcove” workstations outside every room. In the emergency department, pods consisting of patient rooms, nurses’ station and staff areas maximize visibility so that nurses can see most if not all their patients from one spot.

Let there be light

Natural light plays an important role in the new hospital. Officials say abundant research shows that patients who have access to light and nature use less pain medication, go home sooner, and heal faster. Skylights, solar tubes and atriums will provide natural light in areas that typically don’t see it in a hospital, such as labs, operating rooms, and the emergency department. The green roof is dotted with about 20 skylights and solar tubes that direct natural light into the treatment areas below. In operating suites, a window faces the hallway’s floor-to-ceiling glass and a view of the surrounding hills.

Going Green

Los Angeles-based CO Architects designed the new Palomar as a garden hospital to promote a healing environment. The green wavy roof above the surgical floor is covered with drought-resistant vegetation, imitating the surrounding hills. The roof also will help conserve energy by reducing heat absorption. Terraces at three points on every patient floor create vertical conservatories.