UCI Health opens inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Irvine

Seventh hospital in the system and second hospital opened in Irvine within 12 months

UCI Health — Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital is now serving patients throughout Orange County and the surrounding region. This is the academic health system’s seventh hospital, a 52-bed, 68,000-square-foot freestanding facility developed through a joint venture partnership with Lifepoint Rehabilitation, an operating division of Lifepoint Health.

The hospital strengthens the continuum of care across UCI Health by serving patients transitioning from UCI Health — Orange, UCI Health — Irvine and other hospitals throughout the region. It provides specialized inpatient rehabilitation for patients recovering from stroke, traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, orthopedic injuries, surgery and other serious illnesses that affect mobility and independence. The four-story hospital features a specialized brain and spinal cord injury unit, an independent living suite where patients can practice daily home activities, as well as the latest therapeutic and robot-assisted technologies designed to help patients regain independence and return home. It is also less than two miles away from UCI Health — Irvine, the 144-bed all-electric acute care hospital that opened in December 2025.

“The UCI Health— Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital expands access to advanced inpatient rehabilitation care for patients recovering from stroke, traumatic injuries and other serious conditions,” said Chad T. Lefteris, president and CEO of UCI Health. “This location provides Orange County and the region with increased access to high-quality rehabilitation care supported by the research, innovation and clinical expertise that define Orange County’s only academic health system.”

“This grand opening is an exciting milestone for Lifepoint Rehabilitation, UCI Health, and, most importantly, the patients we serve in Orange County and the surrounding region,” said Russ Bailey, president of Lifepoint Rehabilitation. “We know the team at UCI Health shares our commitment to providing patient-centered, evidence-driven rehabilitation care, and that together, we will be able to return our patients to their lives and families as soon as possible.”

Setting the stage for optimal recovery

“As people live longer and chronic disease becomes more common, more patients need specialized and coordinated rehabilitation care after serious illness or injury,” said Dr. Jay J. Han, chairman of the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and the medical director of the new UCI Health –– Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital. “Closely coordinated inpatient rehabilitative care is the most effective way to improve a patient’s function and mobility as much as possible so that they can get back to their lives optimally and much more quickly,” said Han.

As part of the only academic health system in Orange County, on-site physicians and healthcare professionals will also conduct research to advance rehabilitative care for patients in the region and beyond. The hospital will also serve as a living laboratory for new and emerging technologies and therapies.

Additional UCI Health –– Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital features for patients and visitors include:

• 52 private rooms with an abundance of natural light, along with a bathroom, shower and small sitting area for family and visitors
• A state-of-the-art brain injury unit with a dedicated space featuring innovative therapies to enhance recovery
• A large gym that encompasses a majority of the fourth floor, including a simulated car and mock kitchen
• A fourth-floor outdoor courtyard, featuring walking paths with varied surfaces, garden and a small putting green

The new UCI Health –– Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital will not only provide the most advanced rehabilitation care, but also present opportunities for patients with stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, severe burn, polytrauma, amputations and injuries to participate in clinical research. 

The hospital will also house Orange County’s first dedicated inpatient cancer rehabilitation hospital unit, led by cancer rehabilitation physicians working closely with cancer specialists and a dedicated team specializing in supportive oncology therapies. The specialized unit will open at a later date. 

This location is the latest inpatient hospital in a system that also includes UCI Health — Orange, the system's flagship academic medical center, and the UCI Health Community Network, established in 2024 with the acquisition of four long-standing community hospitals: UCI Health — Fountain Valley, UCI Health — Lakewood, UCI Health — Los Alamitos and UCI Health — Placentia Linda.

For additional information, visit https://www.ucihealth.org/locations/irvine/irvine-rehabilitation-hospital.

About UCI Health

UCI Health, one of California’s largest academic health systems, is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. The 1,461-bed system comprises its main campus UCI Health — Orange, its flagship hospital, the UCI Health — Irvine acute care hospital and medical campus, the newly opened UCI Health –– Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital, along with four hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and a network of ambulatory care centers across the region. UCI Health — Orange provides tertiary and quaternary care and is home to the only Orange County-based National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves 5.6 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.

About Lifepoint Rehabilitation

With more than 50 freestanding inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs), Lifepoint Rehabilitation is a leading partner of choice for many major hospital systems in the creation of joint venture operations that are industry-leading in clinical outcomes. Through its IRFs and more than 250 hospital-based rehabilitation units, medical/surgical and outpatient therapy settings, Lifepoint Rehabilitation brings proven rehabilitation management and services expertise to help our patients recover and return home quickly from a number of conditions, including strokes, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, orthopedic injuries, neurological conditions, amputations and trauma. Lifepoint Rehabilitation is an operating division of Brentwood, Tennessee-based Lifepoint Health.