New Stanford hospital to open one week from today – Scope

One week from today, on Nov. 17, the doors of the elegant new building at 500 Pasteur Drive in Palo Alto, California, will officially open for patient care.

The new Stanford Hospital's long-awaited debut is the culmination of a journey that began more than a decade ago, when Stanford Medicine leaders began planning for a space to accommodate the latest advances in medical technology, ensure optimal capacity for patient care and meet new seismic safety requirements.

In recent months, we've been treated to previews of many exciting features of this beautiful new 824,000-square-foot medical facility -- from the spacious operating suites to the breathtaking works of art, from the rooftop gardens to the comforting, technology-rich patient rooms.

A spin through the photo archive illustrates just how far we've come.

Seven years ago, the site of the future hospital was a mound of rubble, as workers demolished a parking structure and office building to make way.

A year later, in fall 2013, workers completed mass excavation of the site, having removed more than 200,000 cubic yards of dirt.

The "Topping Off" ceremony in March 2015 marked the symbolic completion of the structural phase of construction.

Five months later, steel supports were removed from the first cantilevered patient pavilion. This distinctive architectural element makes the pavilions appear to be floating in the air.

By November 2015, the first of more than 800 glass window panels were in place, promising to offer patients and their families sweeping views of the foothills and surrounding Stanford campus.

And by September 2016, construction had officially reached the halfway mark.

From there interior walls were built, and then exterior features -- including the passenger bridge and the helipad --were added.

Over the past year, the empty rooms have taken on their designated functions, filling with furniture and fixtures: kitchen appliances, imaging equipment, sleeper sofas and patient beds.

In one week, the details will be finalized. Staff members will take their places. Screens will flicker on. Machines will power up. And patients and their families will be welcomed to their new rooms.

Let the countdown begin.

Feel free to join in on the excitement on social media -- Instagram, Twitter and Facebook -- using the hashtag #NewStanfordHospital.

Photos courtesy of Stanford Health Care

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New Stanford hospital to open one week from today - Scope