In 2015, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and paediatrician Priscilla Chan announced a $75 million gift to San Francisco General Hospital. The massive donation became a crucial part of the transformation of the city's only trauma center and largest safety-net hospital. The $75 million donation by Priscilla Chan helped pay for critical equipment and technology inside the new acute care and trauma center. The new hospital was designed with substantially expanded emergency and intensive-care capabilities. Plans called for two additional trauma rooms and three more operating rooms. The Emergency Department was expected to double in size compared with the existing facility.
The new emergency department would also be capable of significantly increasing its number of beds during a major disaster or emergency. The project included 28 additional intensive-care beds, along with two more palliative-care rooms. For younger patients, the new facility was planned to include four pediatric examination rooms and a dedicated pediatric waiting room in the Emergency Department.
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San Francisco's new hospital was planned with a base-isolated foundation, an advanced seismic-resistant design intended to help protect the facility during earthquakes. The building was also designed as a greener facility, with plans to reduce water and energy consumption and seek LEED Gold certification. For a trauma center that could be called upon during a citywide disaster, these features were intended to make the hospital more resilient while improving everyday patient care.
Priscilla Chan's personal connection to the San Francisco hospital
For Priscilla Chan, the contribution also had a personal connection and was deeply tied to her medical training. She had trained at San Francisco General and experienced firsthand the work carried out by its doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals.
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Chan said she knew firsthand how important the hospital's emergency and trauma services were to people living in, working in or simply visiting San Francisco. “Through my training at The General, I know firsthand the vital health care and trauma services this hospital provides to anyone who lives, works or travels through San Francisco,” Priscilla Chan said.
She also highlighted the dedication of the hospital's staff and said she and Zuckerberg were proud to support the institution. The gift helped fund advanced equipment and technology for a new acute care and trauma center while also supporting plans to turn the existing hospital building into an ambulatory care facility.
The hospital served more than 100,000 patients annually and functioned as both a community hospital and the city's public safety-net provider. It was also San Francisco's only trauma center, meaning critically injured patients from across the city could depend on it for emergency treatment.
