Paradise Valley Hospital providing secure wing for jail inmates

There’s now a dedicated wing in a National City hospital specifically for people in local jails who need medical attention — 10 beds for now, with plans to essentially double that.

The secure area at Paradise Valley Hospital will mean centralized continuity of care, and it will free up deputies to return more quickly to the jails after taking an ailing person to receive medical care.

“Partnerships, such as this innovative collaboration with Paradise Valley Hospital, will ensure resources are prioritized where they should be: on the individual requiring critical medical care and deputies relieved from time-consuming hospital runs so they can return to where their presence is truly needed,” Sheriff Kelly Martinez said in a statement announcing the partnership.

Nearly four years ago, in 2022, a state auditor’s report found that San Diego County had the highest rate of in-custody deaths among California’s large counties.

Martinez, who has been leading the department since 2023, has made several reforms in the jails. Those include bringing in physicians to assess people during the intake process as they are booked into jail.

Sheriff’s Cmdr. Jesse Johns, who oversees detention operations, said that providing better access to care “gave us the ability to identify...