Golf money one piece to Hoag’s puzzle

Mathis Winkler

NEWPORT BEACH -- For Stephanie McClellan, there’s no question about

it. Working as Hoag Hospital’s medical consultant for women’s services,

she knows that her department is pressed for space.

Right now, private patient rooms get snapped up quickly, leading to a

standing joke among hospital employees that Hoag’s affluent customers

probably never shared a bathroom growing up -- much less with a stranger.

A new women’s pavilion, expected to open in 2004, will alleviate the

problem.

“If we have one negative thing about Hoag, it’s that we need that

physical building,” McClellan said.

To help pay for the pavilion, the proceeds of this year’s Toshiba

Senior Classic will benefit Hoag’s women’s services department.

But even if hospital officials get a check of more than an expected $1

million from the tournament, the money will only cover a small percentage

of the building’s cost.

Construction of the seven-story tower, which will stand as tall as the

existing 10-story nursing tower, will run to about $100 million.

Hoag’s regular donors have pledged and donated more than $30 million.

The hospital’s foundation, which oversees the fund-raising, expects to

bring that number up to $50 million.

Hospital officials say the rest of the money will come from hospital

reserves and loans.

Because most of the pavilion’s patients will come to the hospital to

deliver babies rather than to undergo treatment for illnesses, hospital

officials directed the project’s interior designers to create a warm

atmosphere that’s different from the sterile-looking rooms and hallways

found in many hospitals. Initial plans reveal decorating schemes usually

reserved for upscale hotels.

McClellan’s patients, who come to her private practice just across the

street from the hospital, already benefit from a similar environment.

The waiting room’s gilded mirrors and cushy sofas create a country

club atmosphere. A similar feeling dominates McClellan’s office, which

has thick, dark green carpets and large, white armchairs.

But McClellan said she doesn’t care much for these surroundings. The

new pavilion’s aesthetics also leave her relatively indifferent.

“It will be a beautiful building,” she said. “But that impresses me

the least. We have lots of beautiful buildings around here.”

What really gets her going is her desire to turn Hoag’s health-care

services for women into the best available.

The pavilion, which will bring together all of Hoag’s health services

related to women, will allow McClellan and her colleagues to build on the

department’s far-reaching reputation for excellence and offer women

all-round care under a single roof, she said.

Comprehensive care for women in menopause, women of all ages suffering

from eating disorders and incontinence are some of the areas McClellan

wants to expand. She added that she also wants to rethink approaches to

detecting and treating breast cancer and put together an aggressive

monitoring program for high-risk patients.

“If we can’t do it, who can?” she said. “We have all the resources. We

need to do it.”