Peninsula Jewel

The Food Court is close to the Lobby and sitting areas.

Over the years we have visited San Francisco and Peninsula hospitals, including Stanford, UCSF, Mills, and California-Pacific. Fortunately, the occasions rarely were for our personal health needs but mainly to call on patients whom we knew. We have no medical training and are ill qualified to pronounce judgment on the quality of health care. That important caveat aside, I have to say that the new Mills-Peninsula Medical Center is the finest-looking facility I have seen.

Open on May 15th on the site of the old Peninsula Hospital, the $618 million hospital boasts state-of-the-art technology throughout. The larger floorplan of the rooms, plus higher-than-average ceilings, imparts a feeling of spaciousness not found in other buildings. I particularly liked the lounge and waiting areas, some with kitchenettes, on each floor. The needs of family members, far from being an afterthought, were built into the design.

The appearance of a campus building may have little to do with the learning that goes on inside; similarly, the looks of this hospital don't necessarily mean that the physicians are sparkling, too. Nevertheless--for what it's worth--our visitors' experience was comfortable, and our patient, after a four-day stay, is well on her way to recovery.