Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center

Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center is a skilled nursing facility owned and operated by the City and County of San Francisco, California. It provides a range of long term care and rehabilitation services to a predominantly safety-net population.

Home to 930 residents, it is the largest skilled nursing facility in the United States, and represents the most extensive investment in long term and rehabilitative care by any American city or county.

Laguna Honda provides specialized services to seniors and adults with disabilities who require 24-hour nursing care due to traumatic brain injuries, the effects of stroke, spinal cord injuries, orthopedic injuries, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and other dementias, psychosocial disabilities, and developmental disabilities.

Among the programs provided by Laguna Honda are the only HIV/AIDS skilled nursing facility in the San Francisco Bay Area, monolingual care for speakers of Spanish and Chinese, an adult day health center, hospice, outpatient nutrition services, and complex care for residents with multiple diagnoses.

Whenever possible, Laguna Honda strives to help residents reclaim functionality and transition to independent living. It provides a full range of therapeutic services, including physical, occupational, vocational and activity therapy. Most residents receive some form of restorative care. Laguna Honda’s restorative care program was named a 2007 Best Practice by the California Hospital Association.

Laguna Honda opened in 1866 as an almshouse to care for one of the first generations of San Franciscans, the Gold Rush pioneers. In 2010, it will move into new quarters now under construction on its 62 acre campus on the west side of San Francisco’s Twin Peaks.

The architecture of the new Laguna Honda, which will replace the hospital’s current 1920s-era buildings, incorporates research on hospital environments by the Concord, California-based Center for Health Design that will lend therapeutic value to the buildings themselves. The new facility will also emphasize the healing effects of Laguna Honda’s natural environment, featuring 11 therapeutic gardens, a petting zoo, a meadow with walking paths, and spectacular views. It will house 780 residents, fewer than the current facility.

Laguna Honda’s annual budget is $192 million. Federal dollars account for 74% of total funding. The San Francisco general fund provides 26%. The average age of residents is 72 years; 50% are men and 50% are women. The average length of stay for residents who return to independent living within one year is 4.5 months. The average length of stay for long-term residents is five years.

The facility employs a staff of 1,500 nurses, doctors, social workers, nutritionists, therapists, housekeepers, and maintenance personnel. Laguna Honda was named a 2008 Business of the Year by Jewish Vocational Services of San Francisco for its commitment to the professional development of its staff.

The Laguna Honda Volunteers, Inc., a philanthropic organization founded in 1957, supports the work of the hospital by providing companionship to residents as well as amenities such as aviaries, aquariums, books, personal necessities, assistive devices and other items. Under the auspices of the Volunteers, over 300 San Franciscans donate their time to Laguna Honda every year.