Guide to San Diego's Hospitals

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Kaiser Permanente San Diego

Kaiser Permanente was founded in 1945 by Sidney Garfield, M.D., and Henry J. Kaiser. What began as a program of healthcare nearly 60 years ago has become a model for the industry. The founders created an innovative health plan that’s convenient, affordable and dedicated to health and well-being. Kaiser Permanente is the nation’s largest nonprofit health plan, serving the San Diego area since 1967.

The Medical Center has 392 licensed beds and a 24-hour emergency department with 54 beds. In addition to the Medical Center, there are 20 outpatient medical facilities throughout the county. Kaiser Permanente’s 6,500-person staff and its 830 physicians serve nearly 500,000 members in the San Diego area.

Some of the many benefits of Kaiser include physicians with final say on prescriptions for medically necessary drugs; the ability for patients to choose or change physicians for any reason; carefully selected physicians—only one out of eight physician applicants is accepted—many with national reputations and some who teach at leading universities; and annual member surveys in an effort to improve physician and staff interaction and communication skills with patients, as well as medical knowledge.

SPECIALTIES AND RESEARCH

Kaiser Permanente’s National Research Council recognizes the importance of research, specifically in developing and communicating the evidence base for what medical care works for which patients and population under what circumstances, at what cost and in which delivery settings. Research targets areas where Kaiser Permanente has a particular advantage in conducting specific research. For example, the effective use and impact of the automated medical record on achieving evidencebased care—important because Kaiser Permanente is on the national leading edge of this technology implementation. Other examples include genetic studies, cancer, pharmacological and primary care research.

HONORS AND RECOGNITION

Kaiser Permanente has consistently ranked in the top echelon in clinical quality and patient satisfaction surveys conducted by independent organizations, as well as earning recognition from the community as a quality healthcare provider. Among the accolades in 2006: The San Diego Union Tribune named KP San Diego as the Best Healthcare Provider in San Diego County for the fifth year in a row. KP received the most stars in the HMO Quality Report from the California Office of the Patient Advocate, the sixth straight year for receiving OPA recognition. The San Diego Medical Center was named a winner of the 2006 Consumer Choice Awards by the National Research Corporation, and the San Diego Medical Center was again recognized when it was named one of the top 50 hospitals in the nation by The Leapfrog Group. The ranking was a result of The Leapfrog Hospital Quality and Safety Survey. The San Diego Medical Center also received the prestigious U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ Medal of Honor for excellence in organ donation. This award is given to hospitals across the United States for achieving a lifesaving organ donation rate of 75 percent or greater for a sustained 12-month period.

CONTACT INFORMATION

619-528-5000
kaiserpermanente.org
(in Spanish: kaiserpermanente/espanol.org)