Dr. Michael J. Stamos is all smiles at the July 2023 topping-off ceremony for a new hospital under construction at UCI Health — Irvine.
Photos by Karen Tapia
Dr. Michael J. Stamos, dean of the UCI School of Medicine, once envisioned opening a small cancer center on the UCI campus in Irvine. What has emerged, he says, is so much more: a $1.3 billion medical complex that rivals the best on the West Coast.
"For more than 50 years, there was a dream of creating a hospital on the UC Irvine campus. Dr. Stanley van den Noort, who was dean of the College of Medicine from 1973 to 1986, tried hard to get a hospital built in Irvine but ultimately failed. UCI ended up acquiring the county hospital in the City of Orange.
In 2016, I had a conversation with Dr. Richard Van Etten, director of the UCI Health Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Rick Gannotta, our UCI Health CEO at the time. It wasn’t about building a hospital, though we desperately needed more space. But we didn’t dare dream that big. We just talked about creating a second cancer center on the UCI campus in Irvine.
We looked at land along California Avenue, which is all we thought was available. We didn’t know if the University of California Board of Regents would approve it or if the UCI faculty would embrace it. We did know that a new cancer center would require staffing for a lot of different specialties. It was daunting, too, because our operations were largely decentralized.
That was the impetus for creating what we call clinical integration, an integrated, aligned operation — from the C-suite to physicians to staff. It allowed us to be nimble in making decisions.
After reorganizing, we went to UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman in 2017 with our plan for a second cancer center along California Avenue to serve more patients and spur greater collaboration with campus cancer researchers. He embraced the idea, then paused and said, ‘What about building it on Jamboree?’
That was a light-bulb moment. The north campus had far more acreage, which meant we could think bigger. We could build not only a new cancer center, but also add much-needed hospital beds, operating suites and outpatient clinical space.
There would be challenges, of course. We needed to assure the Board of Regents that this project would be financially reasonable and successful. Despite the many hurdles, I was optimistic.
Now, seven years later, our new medical complex, UCI Health — Irvine, is about to have a huge impact on the county and the patients we serve. We are hiring 150 new physicians this year alone. As UCI Health has continued to grow over the last five years, we’ve improved our ability to recruit new stars on the clinical side and research side. This new campus brings the advanced medical care we provide at UCI Medical Center to the residents of coastal and south Orange County.
It’s a dream come true! I’m excited for the ribbon-cutting. I’ve had lots of sneak previews of the new campus, but I can’t wait for the real thing. When we treat the first patient, I will be on hand. And we are just beginning to make the best possible healthcare accessible to all the residents of Orange County. We’re not done yet!"
Related stories
About UCI Health — Irvine
UCI Health — Irvine, a new medical complex at the north end of the UC Irvine campus, is bringing unparalleled expertise and the finest evidence-based care that only an academic health system can offer to the communities of coastal and south Orange County. As part of UCI Health — which includes the flagship UCI Medical Center in Orange, Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and multiple outpatient care locations — the new 1.2 million-square-foot campus will offer key clinical programs in oncology, digestive health, neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and spine surgery. The nation’s first all-electric, carbon-neutral medical center, UCI Health — Irvine is home to the Joe C. Wen & Family Center for Advanced Care, a five-story, 168,000-square-foot medical facility offering the full range of multidisciplinary specialty care for children and adults under a single roof, urgent care services, the Center for Children’s Health and the UCI Health Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders. The Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center and Ambulatory Care building, a five-story, 225,000-square-foot structure, opened its doors July 16. Coming in 2025: a seven-story, 350,000-square-foot, acute care hospital and 24-hour emergency department.
