Eisenhower Medical Center, the Coachella Valley’s only not-for-profit hospital, relies on charity, donations, and philanthropy to continue delivering excellence to all its patients, says Eisenhower Medical Center Foundation President Michael Landes. “Everybody makes a difference,” he says.
Founded by a small group of donors in 1971, Eisenhower Medical Center has expanded exponentially to meet the area’s ever-growing population and diverse demographics. In addition to its signature acute care hospital on 130 acres, Eisenhower is transforming itself from a medical center to a complete health system, Landes says. “We have nine locations and health centers throughout the Coachella Valley, soon to be 10. These are truly advantageous for employers, because employees need to have access to a convenient, effective, and appropriate healthcare facility so they can be productive.”
Eisenhower offers several centers of excellence, including neurology, oncology, cardiology, and primary care. It is also expanding Desert Orthopedic Center. “You have top-quality, state-of-the-art healthcare that competes with top-quality university and academic centers,” he says. “Eisenhower is always on a pathway to become ever more sophisticated.”
As the largest employer in the Coachella Valley, the hospital is also concentrating on developing a highly skilled local workforce through a Coachella Valley Economic Partnership internship program and its 2-year-old school of graduate medical education. “We now have over 35 residents practicing and specializing in internal medicine, family medicine, and specialties such as geriatrics,” Landes says. “Our hope is that those residents will choose, once they graduate from the residency program after a three-year stint with us, to stay in the Coachella Valley and practice medicine.”
Landes encourages everyone to consider enjoying the desert lifestyle. “[My wife] Stephanie and I have raised our family here in the Coachella Valley because we absolutely love it,” he says. “The valley is peaceful, calm, and beautiful. We have theater, arts, museums, and, of course, some of the finest healthcare that you can ask for.”