Onvida Health, VA Partner to Build 30,000-Square-Foot Yuma Veteran Clinic

A new 30,000-square-foot, free-standing VA outpatient clinic is taking shape off Interstate 8 in Yuma, the product of a formal partnership between Onvida Health and the Southern Arizona VA Health Care System that reached a milestone when officials broke ground at the Foothills Medical Plaza on January 23.

The Yuma VA Outpatient Clinic will sit on the Onvida Health Foothills Medical Plaza campus along South Frontage Road and is estimated to open in summer 2027. SAVAHCS, which runs its main campus in Tucson and already operates community-based outpatient clinics throughout its eight-county service area, serves more than 170,000 veterans across the region. The Yuma facility is designed to bring more of that care directly to veterans in the county rather than requiring long drives to Tucson.

Maria Nguyen, SAVAHCS interim CEO and director, framed the project as more than a construction contract. "We are thrilled to announce the construction of our new Yuma VA clinic in partnership with Onvida Health," Nguyen said. "This project is born out of our strong and ongoing academic affiliation with Onvida Health. This new state-of-the-art facility will significantly expand healthcare access for our Yuma Veterans. Together, we are committed to providing the highest quality care to the Yuma Veteran community."

Dr. Robert Trenschel, president and CEO of Onvida Health, described the project in personal terms. "This partnership gives us the opportunity to care for those who protected our country while expanding services tailored to the unique needs we often see as a result of military service," Trenschel said. "Building this facility with the VA is not only necessary, it is truly an honor."

The partnership grew from a pre-existing academic relationship between the two organizations. That affiliation now extends to Onvida's Family and Community Medicine Residency Program, where medical residents will provide care to veterans while gaining clinical training experience at the new facility.

Onvida Health is a not-for-profit hospital system anchoring health care in Yuma County and southwestern Arizona. Its network includes two hospitals, 430 inpatient beds, 45 outpatient clinics, and a free-standing Emergency Department, staffed by 495 providers across 52 specialties and approximately 4,000 employees. The VA clinic will be a standalone addition to the Foothills Medical Plaza campus, separate from Onvida's existing outpatient infrastructure.

The VA first announced the project publicly on November 18, 2025, with plans calling for a December 2025 groundbreaking. The ceremonial event ultimately took place January 23, 2026, when officials from SAVAHCS and Onvida were joined by city and state elected officials at the Foothills site. Construction is now underway, with summer 2027 as the projected opening target.

Onvida's deepening role in training and community workforce development extends beyond the VA partnership. The health system recently announced a partnership with STEDY, the Southwest Technical Education District of Yuma, to expand hands-on healthcare career pathways for local students, and separately joined the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix to launch what the two institutions describe as Arizona's first rural regional medical school branch.

The specific services to be offered at the Yuma VA Outpatient Clinic have not yet been publicly detailed by SAVAHCS or Onvida. Project cost, construction contractor, and staffing model details also remain pending. SAVAHCS public affairs and Onvida Health communications have been contacted for additional information.