Thirty Years Young: Kaiser Permanente's Milpitas Medical Office Celebrates

1983 Opening Remembered

                Kaiser Permanente physician Dr. Ramon Garcia was recalling the time he was hired as one of the first physicians at KP’s new medical office in Milpitas 30 years ago.

                “There wasn’t much around here,” said Dr. Garcia. “A skating  rink, a lumber yard, and our little family of caregivers.”

                That was 1983, and Milpitas, and Kaiser Permanente’s medical offices in Milpitas, have changed. But at a recent 30th Anniversary lunch-time gathering for the staff, Dr. Garcia and other longtime Milpitas Medical Office caregivers  like Dr. Nestor had a chance to reminisce.

                “It was a small staff, and everyone could fit in the one building on Calaveras Road,” Dr. Garcia recalled.  “I can definitely say that Kaiser Permanente members who lived in the Milpitas area were happy to have us close by. They didn’t have to travel to Sunnyvale or Santa Clara to receive care from Kaiser Permanente doctors.”

                In 1983, the Milpitas Medical Office was opened as  a “satellite” of the Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara hospital.  The medical office offered  only  a limited staff for care in  Internal Medicine, Ob-Gyn, Pediatrics, Dermatology, Allergy and Urgent Care. It featured a Laboratory,  an X-ray facility and  a Pharmacy department. Dr. Garcia was hired for urgent care.

Today, there’s a staff of more than 350 caregivers, providing all of the above   plus Adult and Child Psychiatry, Physical Therapy, Occupational Health, Health Education, Member Services, Patient Relations, and two additional Pharmacies. The Milpitas Adult Medicine department offers Chronic Condition services in Hypertension, Cholesterol and Diabetes.

The paper “charts” of 1983 have been replaced by an advanced electronic medical record system that follows a patient from the doctors office to the specialist to the emergency room to the hospital and the patient’s home. X-rays and mammograms are digital:  there are no more films.

And the small Kaiser Permanente  Milpitas Medical Office has grown and is now serving more than 70-thousand members. And it has enlarged from one office on Calaveras Boulevard in 1983 to now four buildings  serving those members. Pediatrics has its own building.

                And it was in the parking lot of the pediatrics building that a large white tent was put up for the anniversary luncheon:  there were balloon archways leading to the tent, a catered BBQ luncheon, and recorded music.

                One of the staff created a “time line” of the Milpitas Medical Office history, noting significant events over the 30 years that the office has been serving Kaiser Permanente members. And there were historic pictures of Milpitas and its dedicated caregivers.

                “I started in Milpitas as a medical assistant,” said Lisa Connelly, now the Emergency Department manager of the Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Hospital. “What I experienced here in the excellent  caring for our patients led me to return to school and get my nursing degrees.”

                Connelly was with two Milpitas retired nurses and a long-time medical office staffer. They were sharing “war stories” about the old days working with Dr. Garcia, Dr. Nestor and other physicians. There were speeches and a shout-out to the staff for earning exceptional patient satisfaction  ratings .  And at the end of lunch, they all returned to work, starting  year number 31 of caring for Kaiser Permanente members in Milpitas.