Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center Proudly Celebrates 120 Years of Service to Our Community

It’s 2023 and Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center (PVHMC) is celebrating a very special time in our history. The residents of our community realized a need for localized medical care in 1899, when Pomona experienced a fatal train derailment. Local citizens cared for the injured in their homes as the nearest care was a horse-drawn ambulance ride in Los Angeles many miles away.

Pomona citizens met and mandated that a hospital be built to serve the area. In 1903, exactly 120 years ago, Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center opened with 12 beds inside a two-and-a-half story home.

It was from this humble beginning that PVHMC has grown to 412 beds and is now staffed with more than 600 Physicians, 3,900 Associates and hundreds of Volunteers. Our commitment to providing our community with the highest quality and safe healthcare has never wavered. We remain dedicated to serving the health needs of the greater Pomona Valley community.

As our 120-year anniversary celebration continues throughout 2023, we’ll provide more background history that has formed the culture of our institution. In addition to commemorating our past, we look to the exciting future growth of our 120th year and beyond…

Excelling in Providing Exceptional, Specialized Care for Our Region

Over the years, Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center has truly become a leading healthcare provider for our growing community. We are one of the largest volume Trauma Centers in the region, serving eastern Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County; the largest Comprehensive Stroke Center in the region, including Los Angeles County; and we continue to be one of largest birthing centers in the state of California (#7).

Pediatric Unit Opening in December

In December, our new pediatric unit will expand pediatric inpatient services and improve access to a higher level of care. Our state-of-the-art unit will lessen the number of patients transferred to out-of-area hospitals and allow our local pediatricians and primary care physicians an option for direct admissions to PVHMC. The new pediatric unit will complement PVHMC’s complete prenatal to adolescent care it currently provides. A $15 million dollar grant from the California Health Facilities Financing Authority will help finance the 15-bed unit that has been designed to promote a healing environment for children under our care.

Also contained will be a telemedicine program to allow for immediate, remote patient access. The facility will continue to be staffed by pediatric hospitalists and neonatologists through an affiliation with CHOC Children’s Hospital.

PVHMC and Riverside Community Hospital OB/GYN Residency Program Collaboration Celebrates One Year Anniversary

In June 2022, PVHMC partnered with Riverside Community Hospital (RCH) to launch a new OB/GYN residency program, developed in part due to a generous gift of $100,000 from The Rauch Family Foundation. The program has been under development over the past several years and will proudly celebrate its one-year anniversary this June.

The OB/GYN Residency Program was a vision brought to life under the leadership of M. Hellen, Rodriguez, MD, the hospital’s Medical Director of Maternal Fetal Medicine. Richard Burwick, MD, was named the medical director for the program at its launch in June 2022.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, there is a shortage of practicing OB/GYNs due to several factors, including physician retirement and lack of residency positions. PVHMC partnered with RCH to establish this program in alignment with its vision to attract qualified OB/GYNs to the area. A recent analysis of family medicine residency programs showed that more than half of resident physicians will practice within 100 of miles of where they completed their training. This program is no different - it aims to retain residents in OB/GYN practices throughout the community.

Expanded Access to Vital Primary Care Services

Access to primary care is associated with greater health outcomes for patients. From preventive care to early detection and treatment of disease, our primary care physicians play an important role in managing our patient’s health and wellness at all stages of their lives. To further improve access to primary care in our community, we are in the process of expanding our primary care office at the Pomona Valley Health Center, Claremont. The space is expected to open in April 2023. We are also working to build a new Pomona Valley Health Center in Phillips Ranch, Pomona. The office is expected to open in early 2024.

Awards and Recognitions

Our Associates are our most valuable asset and it’s their dedication to excellence has earned our Hospital a number of prestigious awards and designations from U.S. News & World Report, naming PVHMC Best Regional Hospital and high performing in many categories. We earned many accolades from Healthgrades for patient safety and 5-star specialty care. We have been consistently ranked for our top stroke and diabetes care by the American Heart Association. Our exceptional nurse team has maintained its Magnet Designation. We’ve made the honor roll for maternity care, opioid care and more.

As we work our way through 2023, I want to thank our valued clinicians and Associates in their continued commitment in providing exceptional care to our community. Our growth and success is a testimony to the solidarity we share in improving the communities we serve.

We could not have earned such impressive national recognition and accolades if it were not for the dedication of our talented Physicians, Nurses and Associates.