WEST O‘AHU
Straub Benioff Medical Center at the Town Center of
As the Leeward side grows and evolves, so too do the investments being made in workforce development and in health care. Meet some of the people and organizations driving positive change within the communities of West O‘ahu.
The Queen’s Medical CenterWest O‘ahu | Kahi Mohala
Mililani
BUILDING HEALTHIER COMMUNITIES
Ease, accessibility and superior care are at the heart of the newly opened state-of-the-art Straub Benioff Medical Center - Mililani Clinic & Urgent Care.
Having opened in August, the clinic is a joining of Straub Benioff’s existing clinics at the Town Center of Mililani and Mililani Shopping Center, combining all existing and new services in one place.
“We want people and their families to be able to see their primary care providers, specialists, and get imaging and urgent care all in one convenient location,” says Dr. Sandra Noon, Hawai‘i Pacific Health chief of primary care. The new clinic is at the Town Center of Mililani.
At 24,000 square feet, it’s the largest in Straub Benioff’s extensive network of neighborhood clinics. With 55 exam rooms, it was built to meet the needs of current and future patients with spaces that can be easily adjusted for growth, new technology and expanded teams of doctors and providers.
Greeters welcome patients when they walk in and help guide them to the right areas. The clinic also has
BY CYNTHIA SWEENEY
spaces for patient classes and other programs that can help to build a healthier community.
“When we broke ground in 2022, we envisioned a clinic that felt more welcoming than a traditional doctor’s office,” Noon says. “I’ve been a physician for more than 30 years, but even I can get a little nervous when I go to my doctor. The design and workflow of the Straub Benioff Mililani Clinic is open and meant to make patients feel comfortable the moment they walk through the doors.”
The clinic also has added urgent care, a service that HPH says is increasingly in demand. Urgent care at the new Straub Benioff Mililani Clinic is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The clinic now offers 3D mammograms so that women who need more detailed screenings can receive it in Mililani.
HPH is also expanding the clinic’s primary care team of doctors, and OB-GYNs and dermatologists will continue to be based there. In addition, “We plan to add to our rotation of visiting specialists,” Noon says. “We’re proud to say that the new clinic is really a modern, efficient
space which will allow our health care teams to collectively work together to focus on our patients.”
HPH sports medicine doctors, rheumatologists and endocrinologists already see patients in Mililani, and there are plans to add even more specialties, giving patients a wider range of care right in their own neighborhood.
“The world is always changing. There is always something new on the horizon,” says Noon. “We realize that the key to providing the highestquality health care is always being ready to adapt to new techniques, technologies and evolving patient needs. I often tell my staff that we should always aim for our true north, which is the health of our patients and community.”
New Straub Benioff Medical Center – Mililani Clinic & Urgent Care
EXPANDING SPACE AND SERVICES
The Queen’s Medical CenterWest O‘ahu is in expansion mode, with the Emergency Department, the Cancer Center, and Kahi Mohala, Hawai‘i’s only freestanding, non-profit psychiatric hospital, set to benefit from increased space and services.
The Emergency Department (ED) at Queen’s West is the second busiest in the state, after Queen’s Punchbowl. The number of patients served there has risen an average of 6% each year, compared to the statewide rate of 1.5% per year.
The expansion, slated for completion in early 2029, will triple the size of the hospital’s current ED to 40,884 square feet. It will add 32 care spaces, including treatment and patient rooms, airborne infection isolation rooms, safe rooms for patients with behavioral health needs, and direct access to the CT scanner from the ambulance entry to expedite testing for stroke patients, plus 48 additional private rooms on the second and third floors of the facility.
BY CYNTHIA SWEENEY
“With the rising demand for health care services in West O‘ahu, our expanded ED will increase access to seamless lifesaving services to better serve our Central and West O‘ahu communities,” says Robin Kalohelani, senior vice president and CEO at Queen’s West and Queen’s Wahiawā. “We remain committed to the mission of our founders, Queen Emma and King Kamehameha IV, to provide in perpetuity, quality health care services to improve the wellbeing of Native Hawaiians and all the people of Hawai‘i.”
In April, Queen’s Cancer Center at Queen’s Medical Center-West O‘ahu received a $5 million grant from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, which will go toward a 2,500-square-foot expansion.
An additional five infusion bays will allow for approximately 2,300 additional treatments per year, and six additional medical oncology exam rooms will accommodate approximately 9,600 additional patient visits per year.
The project is currently in the design development phase.
“The Cancer Center expansion will allow us the ability to better serve our community, so patients are able to receive care closer to home,” says Kalohelani.
Since acquiring Kahi Mohala in October 2024, Queen’s West has offered the full spectrum of care for children and adolescents in psychiatry and behavioral health, including outpatient therapy, partial hospitalization, and emergent and acute care.
The facility is scheduled to undergo renovations to its infrastructure at the end of the year.
“Queen’s cares for the greatest number of patients with behavioral health conditions in the state since we have the only inpatient behavioral health departments,” says Sondra Leiggi Brandon, vice president, patient care, behavioral health. “The Queen’s West ED expansion is timely because some patients who need residential care may be able to bypass acute care services and be transferred directly to Queen’s Kahi Mohala.
The Queen’s Medical Center-West O‘ahu | Kahi Mohala
Stronger with Screening
The Queen’s West Diabetes and Management Center’s multidisciplinary team of experts continues to offer prediabetes and diabetes education focusing on diet, exercise, weight and medication management.
In Hawai‘i, 134,100 adults—more than 10% of the population—live with diabetes according to the American Diabetes Association.
“Our approach includes new medications and technology, as well as fresh techniques and perspectives on managing Type 1, Type 2, and gestational diabetes,” says Kalohelani. “We have dietitians who can help with healthy eating choices and exercise plans, and APRNs who are certified in diabetes management. Our goal is to help patients achieve blood sugar control and live a healthy life.”
Top left is Sondra Leiggi Brandon, VP of Patient Care, Behavioral Health. Below her is Robin Kalohelani, Senior VP and CEO at Queen’s West and Queen’s Wahiawa. Image on the right is Queen’s Kahi Mohala exterior. PHOTOS: THE