Extending its reach in delivering the highest quality care long associated with UCLA, the UCLA Health System - one of the most comprehensive and advanced healthcare systems in the world - dedicated its new Santa Monica campus in a ceremony attended on September 9, 2011 by doctors, nurses, university officials and business and community leaders. officials and business and community leaders.

Los Angeles Orthopaedic Medical Center

In 1998, two of the most prestigious medical institutions in Los Angeles - Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital and UCLA -- forged a far-reaching strategic alliance to broaden the scope of both organizations bringing new and expanded programs for patient care, research and education in musculoskeletal disorders to Southern California and beyond.

While Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital may be the most visible component of the alliance with UCLA, this partnership has provided enhanced opportunities for research and education. Scientists and clinicians will work together in close proximity, stimulating the cross-fertilization of knowledge and experience that generates valuable new ideas and therapies, moving breakthroughs from bench to bedside quickly and safely.

The alliance creates a platform for un-paralleled contributions to patient care and scientific discovery in orthopaedic surgery and musculoskeletal medicine. The new Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital, the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Medical Center on the LAOH downtown campus, the Orthopaedic Hospital Research Center on the UCLA Westwood campus, and the Orthopaedic Hospital/UCLA residency program combined have the capacity to lead advancements in musculoskeletal patient care, research, and education world-wide.

The Orthopaedic Institute

The Orthopaedic Institute, located in the north wing of the new hospital, will house the latest diagnostic and therapeutic equipment to care for children with orthopaedic needs. Jointly funded and owned by LAOH and UCLA, the facility will house LAOH's inpatient services and The Renee and Meyer Luskin Children's Clinic.

Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital (LAOH) has undergone many changes during its lifetime, but none more dramatic - or with the potential for such broad and lasting impact - than the growth and transformation happening today with the dedication of the new Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital.

As a century-old institution, LAOH has reached a significant milestone. For 100 years, the institution has treated over two million children in conjunction with advancing the forefront of musculoskeletal medicine worldwide through research and education. This commitment to service continues unabated today, as LAOH continues to develop innovative and effective ways to bring expert and compassionate medical care to children and adults with disabling musculoskeletal injuries and disorders.

The Everychild Foundation Universally Accessible Playground

Patient care and responding to the needs of the Los Angeles community have always been at the core of the LAOH mission. Initially, this meant the pediatric orthopaedic health care needs of the neighborhoods geographically adjacent to the downtown Los Angeles campus. These neighborhoods have historically been, and continue to be, low-income and their residents have significant health care needs and limited insurance options. This need has been reflected in the surge in demand for services at the downtown campus, where Urgent Care and Pediatric Outpatient Clinics are located.

In response to the growing demand in care, a 40,000 square-foot Outpatient Medical Center was constructed in 2007. There is also an increasing need for services and expertise in West Los Angeles. As a result, The Renee and Meyer Luskin Children's Clinic was established in May 2009, expanding LAOH services. The number of patient visits at this site has grown steadily since its opening.

Dr. Anthony Scaduto

Recognizing that children outside of the U.S. lack access to expert pediatric orthopaedic care, and that many suffer from musculoskeletal disorders that are considered highly treatable in the U.S., LAOH's International Children's Program treats children from many countries. A clinic in Calexico, California serves as a primary site for monthly clinics and assessments of children from Mexico with the most challenging musculoskeletal disorders and disease.

Orthopaedic Hospital Research Center

Research has been integral to the mission of LAOH since 1959. It is the cornerstone of the battle to ensure affordability of treatment and to secure access to quality health care for all. Research efforts have significantly expanded over the past two years. The J. Vernon Luck, Sr., M.D., Orthopaedic Research Center works independently and collaboratively with organizations throughout the orthopaedic community to develop powerful, multi-disciplinary solutions to challenging orthopaedic problems. Augmenting this, the Orthopaedic Hospital Research Center, a 35,000 square-foot facility located on the UCLA Westwood campus, completed a dynamic growth phase in the ambitious effort to solve some of the critical puzzles in the care, treatment and prevention of musculoskeletal diseases and disorders.

Orthopaedic Hospital Medical Magnet High School

LAOH has had a long history of providing education. Today, the institution's medical education programs work to educate the next generation of medical professionals. The Orthopaedic Hospital Medical Magnet High School, established in conjunction with the Los Angeles Unified School District, prepares students for post-secondary study and careers in health care and medical science. This past year, the school received a Silver Medal Ranking from U.S. News and World Report in its annual listing of top high schools, indicating its ranking as within the top six percent across the country.

The LAOH Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery Fellowship program is one of the most highly competitive in the nation. Qualified candidates come from diverse locales and boast rich clinical and academic backgrounds. This robust institutional training environment ensures excellence in orthopaedic care across the country.

LAOH has a vast portfolio of achievements and is always seeking the next great challenge. As the future of health care delivery faces a number of challenges, research will be a key component in holding down health care costs so that access to equitable health care grows. Advances in gene therapy, novel approaches to the treatment of infection and the development of new materials - which LAOH has a history of realizing and is today deeply invested in advancing - will produce more effective and cost-effective care, benefitting both the individual and society.

The success of LAOH and the impact on thousands of patients, their families and the community-at-large is the result of an inspiring collaboration between the institution, its partners and financial supporters, volunteers and employees. This remarkable commitment to serving children with musculoskeletal diseases and disorders is truly the foundation for everything that LAOH has accomplished over the past 100 years, and will be the basis for continued excellence in orthopaedic care into the next century.

Renee and Meyer Luskin

The Renee and Meyer Luskin Children's Clinic serves the needs of children in West Los Angeles and surrounding areas with world-class pediatric orthopaedic care. The clinic provides preeminent treatment for a full spectrum of pediatric orthopaedic conditions such as cerebral palsy, clubfoot, fractures, hemophilia, scoliosis, foot, ankle, hand, wrist and hip disorders, spina bifida and other musculoskeletal disorders. Currently located in a facility adjacent to the new hospital, the clinic will relocate to the Orthopaedic Institute when it opens early in 2012.

Renee and Meyer Luskin generously provided the seed funding for the clinic and announced earlier in 2011, an additional commitment of $1 million to LAOH.