BEXAR COUNTY, Texas \u2013 Gilbert Diaz Sr. was diagnosed with liver cancer in November.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got rushed to University Hospital and they found the tumors,\u201d Diaz said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe were going into the Medical Center for all of his treatments,\u201d said his daughter, Erika Valderrama. <\/p>\n
That\u2019s not close to his Live Oak home, where he\u2019s lived and raised his family for 30 years, an area where the population is now exploding.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s all the new housing and a lot more people,\u201d Diaz said. \u201cIt\u2019s growing and definitely having a hospital nearby, it really helps the people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEspecially when you have elderly patients who may not drive or have lack of transportation,\u201d Valderrama said. <\/p>\n
Their family is thrilled University Health System chose the Northeast Side for one of two new hospitals, right near Retama Park.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know the northeast corridor between San Antonio and Austin is growing so fast. We also looked at the numbers of our patients who come from different parts of town to the Medical Center facilities and many of them come from the northeast neighborhoods,\u201d said University Health spokesperson Elizabeth Allen. <\/p>\n
Allen said the Retama Hospital should be finished in February 2027.<\/p>\n
The other, slightly larger hospital being built as part of the same funding project is the Palo Alto Hospital on the South Side, set to open in April 2027.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe South Side has long been a healthcare desert, and recently in the last couple of years, lost an important South Side hospital. So us coming in to fill that gap, it\u2019s really good for the community,\u201d Allen said. <\/p>\n