BALTIMORE (WJZ)– National and international leaders visited East Baltimore Thursday. Johns Hopkins Hospital dedicated its new, billion-dollar facility with the help of Middle Eastern royals and New York City’s mayor.

Kai Jackson goes inside the cutting-edge new building.

A who’s who of dignitaries attended the opening of Johns Hopkins’ new hospital.Yet Hopkins says the patients they serve will be the real stars.

A ribbon cutting opened the door to a new era for world-renowned Johns Hopkins Hospital.

The trend-setting giant in medicine has done it again. With numerous dignitaries on hand, Hopkins has opened a brand new hospital.

Administrators say it’s now a place where the facility matches the science.

“We needed more than a facelift. We needed a new idea of a what a hospital should be,” Dr. Ed Miller, Johns Hopkins Hospital CEO, said.

Thursday marked the dedication of the state-of-the-art $1.1 billion hospital.

Hopkins says deep-pocket donors like New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg– a Johns Hopkins University graduate– and the United Arab Emirates made it all possible.

Security was tight and roads were closed with so many dignitaries on hand.

“If it will inspire other institutions to do more and to do better, then we all will be happy,” Bloomberg said.

Johns Hopkins believes their new facility is the hospital of the future that will set a new standard for medical care and research.

The new hospital has 560 private rooms, 33 operating rooms and state-of-the-art tools.

Hopkins says all of it is patient-centered.

“My son stayed here for five months, so that room in the old hospital was our home,” Robert Hicks, the father of a former patient, said.

“Our partnership continues to grow with Johns Hopkins. The health authority for Abu Dhabi working closely with the university of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine,” Dr. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan, the grandson of the founder of the UAE, said.

Hopkins staff has been moving into the new hospital over the past month. The hospital opens officially on May 1.

Hopkins says Bloomberg’s personal gift of $120 million was a significant contribution to the new hospital.