Patients moved safely to new Zuckerberg SF General hospital, trauma center opens

SAN FRANCISCO -- Nearly 150 patients at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital were transferred to a new main hospital and trauma center on Saturday, a spokesman for the hospital said.

The first patient left for the new building at 7:28 a.m. and the last made the trip at 4:42 p.m. at 1001 Potrero Ave., hospital spokesman Brent Andrew said.

Patients were moved from the intensive care unit, the birthing center and medical and surgical inpatient units.

Hospital officials said the move went safely.

The new main hospital and trauma center has 284 beds, compared with 252 in the 1970s-era building, hospital officials said.

The emergency department has 58 beds, compared with 27 in the previous department. The number of emergency department beds in the department can be expanded to 120 if a disaster occurs, Andrew said.

"We are really increasing the capacity of the emergency department," he said. The expansion was a priority for hospital officials when the decision to build the new hospital was made.

Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital is San Francisco's only trauma center.

"It was critical to us to create a hospital that could meet the needs of San Francisco because we're the only trauma center in the city," Andrew said.

The emergency department is now accessed from 22nd Street.

Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital sees 108,000 patients each year and provides 20 percent of the city and county's inpatient care.

Nearly 1,100 babies are born each year at the hospital.

The building from which the patients were moved does not meet seismic standards, according to hospital officials.

The new main hospital and trauma center, in contrast, was built using the latest design for earthquake safety.

Work to make the new main hospital and trauma center a reality took nearly eight years, hospital officials said.