Patient’s Family Reunites with Life-Saving Team at East Campus Medical Center

In early March of this year, John Mayers found himself dealing with a persistent fever, body aches and chills for more than a week. When the fever rose to a concerning temperature, John spoke with his primary care physician and was instructed to seek emergency care. 

“The hospital that was closest to my house and had the shortest wait time in the emergency department was East Campus Medical Center at UC San Diego Health, so that is where I went to get my care,” said John. 

After examination, it was determined that John would need to be admitted to better understand what was causing his symptoms.

“It’s a scary call to receive from your partner letting you know he’s staying at the hospital,” explained Carrie Mayers, John’s wife. “He didn’t even tell me he was going to the emergency department, so it was shocking for me to hear that he was now being admitted. I was really worried about him.”

John received multidisciplinary care from a variety of experts in gastroenterology, infection prevention and interventional radiology. 

He was diagnosed with an abscess on his liver due to an E. coli infection that required intravenous antibiotics. Additional testing confirmed the mass was not cancerous. 

John received care at East Campus Medical Center for a week before being discharged. 

Now, nearly two months later, he is recovered, back to work and enjoying cycling, one of his favorite hobbies. 

“It was such a relief to finally feel like myself again,” added John. “I dreamed of the day I’d be back on my bike, which wouldn’t have been possible without this incredible medical team.” 

Embodying the mission of UC San Diego Health

Recently, Carrie reunited with her husband’s medical team at a celebratory event held at East Campus Medical Center. 

“As the wife, caregiver and patient advocate for my husband, I needed to make sure he was receiving the best care possible, and the team at East Campus Medical Center made sure of that,” said Carrie. “All of them made me feel settled during one of the most unsettling times in mine and my husband’s lives.” 

Entitled “Grow with Us” — the event was held on June 7, 2024, and brought together a variety of stakeholders to raise awareness on the evolution and expansion of health care in San Diego.

The community hospital, formally known as Alvarado Hospital Medical Center and now part of UC San Diego Health, opened in 1972 and serves La Mesa, El Cajon and College Area neighborhoods. 

The event gave attendees the opportunity to learn more about the 302-bed facility and the specialty care services it provides, including emergency services, gastroenterology, interventional radiology, and orthopedics and urology services.

Speaking at the event, Carrie added how the team at East Campus Medical Center truly embodies the mission of UC San Diego Health to deliver outstanding patient care through commitment to the community, ground breaking research and inspired teaching. 

“I truly felt the commitment to our community as demonstrated through the care provided in this hospital,” said Carrie. “The medical team listened to us with intent and took wonderful care of my husband and me.

“From the nursing staff in the hospital, to even the administrative team helping me schedule appointments for John’s follow-up care after we were discharged, everyone went above and beyond.”

Reimagining world-class care across San Diego County

During his remarks at the event, UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Khosla shared that with the addition of East Campus Medical Center, UC San Diego Health has now doubled its number of inpatient beds in just seven years, from 544 in 2017 to 1,101 in 2024. 

“We have reimagined what it means to be a public research university that cares for our community by delivering world-class health care, developing new therapies and cures, and focusing on public health. This commitment positions us as the premier health care provider in San Diego County,” said Chancellor Khosla. “We are committed to sharing this excellence by expanding our network in communities where our patients live and work.”

Over the past decade, UC San Diego Health has continued to increase access to care by expanding its two medical campuses in Hillcrest and La Jolla, opening 30 primary and specialty care locations throughout San Diego, and now adding a third hospital with the acquisition of East Campus Medical Center. 

“It’s been a journey to get to where we are now. It actually started about eight years ago in our efforts to imagine improved health care for San Diegans as we developed plans to revitalize Hillcrest Medical Center,” said Patty Maysent, CEO, UC San Diego Health. 

“We knew then the significance of a hospital campus where we could offer increased care services, especially in behavioral health, that will position us as a role model of care for the state and country.”

“The promise of East Campus Medical Center and our plans for a behavioral health hub will meet the promises we have made to our community and will also move us into the future of mental health care,” said Steven Koh, MD, director of outpatient psychiatric services at UC San Diego Health. 

“By utilizing the resources of an academic medical center, community members, political leadership and the entire network of UC San Diego Health, we will ensure that we are one of the key pieces in the community offering care for those in need of mental health support.”

Sharing a common purpose and dedication to patients

UC San Diego Health completed the acquisition of Alvarado Hospital Medical Center in December 2023. 

East Campus Medical Center offers a state-of-the art emergency department and intensive care unit, eight operating rooms, three gastroenterology suites, two cardiac catheterization labs and recently became re-designated as a stroke and STEMI (heart attack) receiving center for responding ambulances.

Since the acquisition, emergency department visits have increased by 8%, operating room volumes have risen, and more than 500 patients have been transferred to the campus from other UC San Diego Health locations, increasing overall capacity for the region’s only academic medical center. 

Maysent added that the acquisition also brought on an additional 700 employees and credentialed medical staff to add to the more than 14,000 individuals already employed by UC San Diego Health, which will help address the increased demand for health care services in San Diego. 

“There was a strong alignment with the teams at Alvarado Hospital Medical Center and UC San Diego Health right from the start,” said Maysent. “We welcomed each other with open arms, and during this transition, we learned that we share a common purpose, which is the steadfast dedication to our patients.”

“We aspire to make East Campus Medical Center the first choice for community health care,” said Christian Tomaszewski, MD, chief medical officer at East Campus Medical Center. “The number of patients we are treating here is rapidly increasing, which is a testament to one of our most recent milestones — the integration of East Campus Medical Center into the electronic medical record system used at UC San Diego Health.”

According to Tomaszewski, this unification of medical records has allowed for safe and seamless sharing of patient information within the entire University of California Health system. 

“This is especially important as it extends our health care services closer to where patients live, with nearly 30% of UC San Diego Health patients living closer to East Campus Medical Center than the medical campuses in Hillcrest and La Jolla,” added Tomaszewski.

Tomaszewski shared that patients now have convenient access to routine blood work, radiology, procedures such as cardiac catherization and, most importantly, emergency care with wait times under 10 minutes, all at East Campus Medical Center.

Stepping up to fill in the gaps

The event also provided the opportunity for community leaders, including San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, to discuss big aspirations for East Campus Medical Center and the impact UC San Diego Health will continue to have on the San Diego region. 

“We have lived through some of the most difficult years as anyone has experienced recently, and the need for emergency health care services and mental health support here in San Diego is real,” said Mayor Gloria. “Why I am optimistic that this will get better is because places like UC San Diego Health are stepping up to fill in the gaps and ensure it is accomplished.” 

Gloria added that through East Campus Medical Center, UC San Diego Health will make a meaningful improvement to the care of many San Diegans and is leading the charge by bringing care to the communities that need it. 

For John and Carrie Mayers, it’s comforting to know they have East Campus Medical Center located just five minutes away from their home. 

“From the staff in the emergency department and nurses who helped me, to the doctors who worked together to figure out what was going on, I felt entirely supported and cared for the entire time I was there,” said John. “I will forever be grateful to this incredible team.”