MURIETTA, Calif., May 29, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Loma Linda University Medical Center, one of the nation's leading teaching and research hospitals, has agreed in principle to pursue a joint venture with Physicians Hospital of Murrieta, LLC, for a $200 million full-service, physician-owned hospital planned in Murrieta.
The 106-bed, state-of-the-art hospital and medical office buildings will be located near the Clinton Keith Road interchange on the 215 Freeway.
"Loma Linda University Medical Center is pleased to work together with Physicians Hospital of Murrieta, LLC, to extend our mission of providing quality health care services to a broader community," said Ruthita J. Fike, Chief Executive Officer for Loma Linda University Medical Center.
LLUMC operates some of the largest clinical programs in the nation in neonatal care and is recognized as the international leader in infant heart transplantation and proton treatment for cancer. LLUMC is the only Level 1 Regional Trauma Center in the Inland Empire serving a population base of approximately 4,000,000 residents. Loma Linda has over 50,000 Emergency Room visits a year and admits more than 33,000 inpatients.
The pioneering joint venture will ensure easy access to world-class medical care for the hundreds of thousands of residents of fast-growing Southwest Riverside County, which stretches from Temecula to Murrieta to Lake Elsinore to Perris and Menifee.
When completed, the hospital will offer general, acute-care services and medical specialties including obstetrics, pediatrics, and cardiovascular services. The hospital, which will provide complete emergency room care, will be joined by two 120,000 square foot medical buildings, which will house specialists and encourage other doctors to open new medical practices in the community.
"Our communities deserve to have access to exceptional healthcare services and technology right here at home, near their doctors and families without having to travel hours to an outlying facility," said Dr. John Piconi, a retired local physician who is leading the physicians' investor group. "This partnership ensures that the medical needs of the community will be met in a more effective and quality manner by affiliating with a major academic medical center."
The physicians investor group includes 70 board-certified doctors who have been providing quality medical care to patients in Southwest Riverside County for years. In addition, Surgical Development Partners, a Nashville, Tennessee-based hospital developer, is a partner in the project. The company has a long experience of helping physicians construct and manage healthcare facilities to meet their communities' needs.
Approval for the project is pending from the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development and City of Murrieta.
Piconi expects construction on the hospital to start in early 2008 with completion scheduled two years later.