Nationally recognized research centers, state-designated trauma
facilities and comprehensive hospitals and medical centers, San
Diego covers the health care needs of the county with ease and
expertise.
According to a
study by Northwestern National Life, San Diego is a good place to
receive medical assistance if you are ill or seeking preventative
care. The region has above-average access to health care, high
enrollments in managed-care programs and a relatively low percentage
of births to teen mothers. There are also a high number of doctors
per capita, as well as a good ratio of family doctors to
specialists. Most of San Diego's health providers are now affiliated
with health insurance groups, networks or managed care programs. The
largest networks and HMOs -- Scripps Health, University of
California, San Diego (UCSD sharp HealthCare and Kaiser Permanente
-- provide care to the overwhelming majority of San Diego residents
and maintain hospitals, urgent care centers, walk-in clinics,
physician offices and auxiliary services throughout the county.
More than 25
full-service hospitals are located in the San Diego area. Many are
nationally renowned for specific areas of specialization including
Level 1 trauma, cardiology, organ and bone transplantation, eye
care, oncology, geriatric care, laser surgery, in vitro
fertilization, mental health, substance abuse and diagnostic
services.
Since the 1950's,
when Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine, San Diego has been home
to a number of research and specialty institutions and biotechnical
companies investigating a wide range of diseases and disorders from
cancer to the common cold. The Salk lnstitute for Biological Studies
and the Scripps Research lnstitute are two of the world's foremost
and largest private, nonprofit research facilities/medical centers.
Two government hospitals are located in the region including the
only designated Alcohol Research Center in the Department of
Veterans Affairs at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center San Diego.
It is also a designated AIDS research center.
In 1954,
Children's Hospital became a major resource for seriously ill or
injured children. The hospital is San Diego's designated pediatric
trauma center and the region's only juvenile emergency care center.
Its neonatal intensive care, pediatric intensive care, oncology,
orthopedic and surgical units have received worldwide attention for
excellence. Other specialty centers include Grossmont Hospital's
David and Donna Long Center for Cancer Treatment and Cardiovascular
Diagnosis, which is the first outpatient center of its kind in the
county, the Shiley Eye Institute, the nationally recognized Sharp-Cabrillo
Diabetes Treatment and Research Center and the Mary Birch Hospital
for Women. A full spectrum of health care professionals and
university-level physician, nursing and public health training
programs support San Diego's medical caregivers. These include
helicopter medical evacuation services, hyperbaric chambers, home
health care options, top-notch physical rehabilitation facilities
and mental health treatment centers.