Riverside University Health System Medical Center

The Riverside University Health System - Medical Center
Riverside County, California
Geography
Location	Moreno Valley, California, United States
Coordinates
Organization
Care system	Government
Type	Teaching
Affiliated university	University of California, Riverside, Loma Linda University, Western University of Health Sciences, California Baptist University
Services
Emergency department	Level I trauma center
Beds	439
History
Opened	1893
Links
Website	http://ruhealth.org/
Lists	Hospitals in the United States

The Riverside University Health System - Medical Center (RUHS-MC), formerly known as Riverside County Regional Medical Center (RCRMC) and Riverside General Hospital University Medical Center (RGH UMC), is a public teaching hospital located in Moreno Valley, California, United States. It is operated by the County of Riverside and is classified as a Level I Trauma Center.

Founded in 1893, the hospital was originally located in downtown Riverside. It later relocated to its current facility on March 31, 1998. Prior to the move, the hospital operated under the name Riverside General Hospital University Medical Center and gained national attention for two patient stories.

In 1983, the case of Elizabeth Bouvia resulted in a landmark court decision that allows mentally competent adults to refuse forced feeding by patient care facilities. This decision allows for the possibility of starvation if the patient cannot otherwise ingest adequate nutrition. In 1994, Gloria Ramirez died in unusual circumstances, with several of her caregivers becoming seriously ill and fainting due to fumes emanating from her body.

History

Riverside County was founded on March 11, 1893. Shortly after its formation, the Board of Supervisors leased 40 rooms of the Riverside Hotel on Evergreen Street in Riverside to serve as a county hospital. The first patient was admitted on July 26, 1893. The site of the original hospital is now North Park, named after the city's founder, John W. North.

In 1896, the Board of Supervisors purchased the Palma Hotel in San Jacinto and relocated the hospital there. However, in 1898, the hospital burned down and was temporarily moved to downtown San Jacinto while the original site was rebuilt.

On December 25, 1899, an earthquake destroyed the newly rebuilt brick hospital, and patients were temporarily housed in tents. The hospital was eventually rebuilt and continued to serve the community until its relocation to Moreno Valley in 1998.