Sutter Health Breaks Ground on $442M Advanced Neuroscience Complex in San Francisco

What You Should Know: 

– Sutter Health this week announced construction on the new Sutter Advanced Neuroscience Complex at Mission Bernal, a development designed to expand access to high-quality neurological and neurosurgical care in Northern California. 

– The five-story, 129,000-square-foot facility will be located at the corner of César Chávez and Valencia streets. It is scheduled to open in 2028 and will serve as a regional hub for brain health, integrating care delivery, advanced diagnostics, and research.

High-Tech Hub for Comprehensive Brain Health

This $442M investment highlights Sutter Health’s enduring commitment to broadening access to specialized, high-acuity care within San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. Once completed, the Sutter Advanced Neuroscience Complex at Mission Bernal will unite approximately 80 physicians and clinicians across diverse neurological specialties. These include Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, ALS, headache, neurosurgery, neurology, epilepsy, neuro-oncology, and movement disorders, all providing seamless, integrated care in a single location.

The new complex is designed to house a full spectrum of services, encompassing neurology, neurosurgery, imaging, lab work, infusion therapies, rehabilitation, and an on-site ambulatory surgery center. Patients will also gain direct access to leading research initiatives and clinical trials, further propelling advancements in diagnosis and treatment.

Notably, two of Sutter’s nationally recognized programs – the Ray Dolby Brain Health Center and the Forbes Norris MDA/ALS Research and Treatment Center – will relocate to the new complex. The new facility is expected to enhance capacity and foster deeper collaboration among specialists.

The facility will also feature underground parking for patient and visitor convenience. In addition, Sutter Health plans to add two neurological intervention suites to the adjacent CPMC Mission Bernal campus hospital by 2027. These suites will be equipped with advanced imaging technology to enable rapid detection and minimally invasive treatment of life-threatening neurological conditions.

“Our goal is to provide coordinated, comprehensive access to integrated care that merges the expertise of neurologists and neurosurgeons,” said Dr. Lewis Leng, a neurosurgeon with Sutter West Bay Medical Group. “The new Sutter Advanced Neuroscience Complex at Mission Bernal will create more access to care for patients with neurological conditions and provide them the opportunity to take advantage of Sutter’s award-winning neuroscience treatment and clinical research.”

The Sutter Advanced Neuroscience Complex is a key component of Sutter Health’s broader strategy to invest nearly $1B in healthcare infrastructure across San Francisco over the next five years. This initiative aims to significantly expand access to specialized medical care, such as Sutter’s new Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery program, and enhance the overall patient experience.

A Vision for Advanced Care and Clinical Training

The Mission Bernal Care Complex is part of a larger effort by Sutter Health to address the growing healthcare needs of Northern California, with over two dozen new facilities currently in development. Beyond expanding access to care, this complex underscores Sutter’s strong commitment to education and workforce development. The organization plans to train over 1,000 medical residents and fellows by 2030. 

Sutter CPMC plays a pivotal role in this, currently training residents and fellows in nationally accredited Graduate Medical Education programs across a wide array of specialties, including advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology, cardiovascular disease, internal medicine, gastroenterology, hand surgery, hematology-oncology, ophthalmology, pulmonary and critical care medicine, psychiatry, and transplant hepatology, in addition to further training in areas like neurocritical care.