Submitted by Rudolph and Sletten

The new 488,000-sq-ft, $360-million El Camino Hospital in Mountain View, which replaces the 49-year-old original, followed a number of guiding principles throughout the designing, planning and construction to maintain focus on building a community hospital of the future. The new building accommodates 223 licensed beds – 85% private – and an emergency room/department holding an additional 36 beds. The building also includes a 10-bed observation unit, a conference center, 16 operating/interventional treatment rooms, a multi-track emergency department and flexible nursing modules with 28 critical care and 180 acuity adaptable beds.

Design for El Camino Hospital started in late 2001 to comply with state law following the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. The existing hospital could not be retrofitted to comply, so the hospital collaborated with the designers, physicians, nurses and the community to create a new model for healthcare. The conceived plan not only adheres to seismic standards, but also improves hospital efficiency, while treating patients in a family-friendly environment that promotes healing.

The project was constructed immediately adjacent to the existing operating hospital with public and patient safety being of the highest priority.

Project Team

Developer/Owner: El Camino Hospital, Mountain View
General Contractor: Rudolph and Sletten, Redwood City
Architect: Kaplan McLaughlin Diaz (KMD), San Francisco
Civil Engineer: Sandis, Mountain View
Structural Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti (formerly Dasse Design), San Francisco
MEP Engineer: Mazzetti Associates, San Francisco