In the first venture of its kind, Stanford Hospital & Clinics began renovation on a comprehensive outpatient center in Redwood City earlier this week. This is the first time in its history that the hospital will provide off-site care.

The center, which is scheduled to open at the end of 2008, will include Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine, Dermatology and Pain Management centers. In addition, the new facility will house one of the largest imaging centers in Northern California and the largest sleep study center on the West Coast.

According to Norman W. Rizk, professor of medicine and senior associate dean for clinical affairs, the center will provide numerous benefits for the community.

“It will essentially double our outpatient space and, in addition, place us closer to our patients in the communities north of us,” he said.

Located at the former headquarters of Excite@Home, a broadband Internet access provider that filed for bankruptcy in 2001, the site features four office buildings totaling approximately 360,000 square feet. Stanford Hospital & Clinics will initially use 260,000 square feet for the project.

Larry Carr, director of government relations at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, added that in addition to its visibility from the US-101 freeway and its proximity to the Stanford campus, the location was chosen based on patient needs.

“In looking at the demographic of the peninsula in our service areas, we saw an increase in the need for health care services,” he said. “This area is aging; there is no population growth and the people that are there now will need more medical services.”

While proponents are happy to increase the number of health care services in the area, it is the potential to improve the way in which these services are offered that truly excites the medical community.

“It is an opportunity to reinvent from whole cloth the way we practice and how we integrate medical information systems,” Rizk said. “It will allow us to refocus on the patient experience in designing the interior of the buildings. It is a fantastic opportunity to become more effective, develop better outcomes and provide great service.”

Carr said that creating a positive patient experience is a top priority.

“It’s a great and unique opportunity to design such a center with a patient-centric mind,” he said. “We think about how to make them as comfortable as possible, how easy is it for them to make an appointment and how to make it as accessible as we can. If any other services are needed, they are right there. You don’t have to drive around.”

The directors’ hope is that the center will serve as a place where patients receive not only numerous services, but also better treatment and care.

“It will make for a much better medical experience,” Carr said.