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                                                                   EXHIBIT 10.17

                                 FIRST AMENDMENT
                                       TO
                             PIONEER HOSPITAL LEASE

         The FIRST AMENDMENT TO PIONEER HOSPITAL LEASE (the "First Amendment")
is executed this 15th day of August, by and between AHP of UTAH, INC., a Utah
Corporation, having its principal office at 6400 South Fiddler's Green Circle,
Suite 1800, Englewood, Colorado 80111, as Landlord ("Landlord") and Paracelsus
Pioneer Valley Hospital, Inc., a Utah Corporation, and a wholly subsidiary of
Paracelsus Healthcare Corporation, a California Corporation ("PHC") having as
its principal place of business at 155 N. Lake Ave., Suite 1100, Pasadena,
California 91101, as Tenant ("Tenant").

                                    RECITALS:

         A. Landlord and Tenant have entered into that certain Lease Agreement
(the "Lease") dated as of May 15, 1996, pursuant to which Tenant leases certain
real property utilized in connection with Pioneer Valley Hospital, a general
acute care hospital located in West Valley City, Utah and licensed by the Health
Facility Licensure Bureau to operate 139 beds, and related facilities, including
but not limited to the Property as defined in the Lease.

         B. PHC has entered into a merger agreement with Champion Healthcare
corporation, "CHC", pursuant to which CHC will merge with a wholly owned
subsidiary of PHC and CHC becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of PHC (the
"Merger") and as part and parcel to such Merger PHC is refinancing its existing
$250 million dollar credit facility with Bank of America with a new, $400
million dollar credit facility with B of A (as defined below), is offering
approximately 5.0 million shares of PHC for sale to the public, and is issuing
PHC shares to the existing shareholders of CHC.

         C. Tenant and Landlord desire to amend the Lease in accordance with the
terms and conditions hereinafter stated.

                                    AGREEMENT

         NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing Recitals, the mutual
covenants and agreements contained herein, and for other good and valuable
consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged,
Landlord and Tenant hereby agree as follows:

         1. DEFINED TERMS. Terms used but not defined herein shall have the
meanings given thereto in the Lease.

         2. AMENDMENTS TO LEASE. Section 17(m) of the Lease is hereby deleted in
its entirety and the following is substituted therefor:

                  "(m) PHC sells or otherwise transfers, directly or indirectly,
         and of the capital stock of Tenant except to a Permitted Transferee (as
         defined below) or in connection with a Permitted Transaction (as

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         defined below) without the prior written consent of Landlord, which
         will not be unreasonably withheld. For purposes of this subsection
         17(m) "Permitted Transferee" means (i) a transferee with respect to
         which Landlord has given its prior written consent, and which has
         provided Landlord with a written acknowledgement, in form reasonably
         acceptable to Landlord, that any further transfer of the capital stock
         which it is acquiring in Tenant will be subject to the provisions of
         this subsection 17(m); (ii) any wholly-owned subsidiary of PHC which
         provides to Landlord the written acknowledgement described in clause
         (i) above; and (iii) B of A and the other lenders ("B of A") providing
         credit to PHC pursuant to a Credit Agreement dated as of August 16,
         1996, as such Credit Agreement may hereafter be modified or amended in
         accordance with its terms (the "New Credit Agreement"), to the extent
         that such shares of capital stock in Tenant are pledged by PHC to B of
         A and such lenders pursuant to such Credit Agreement."

         3. PERMITTED TRANSACTION. Landlord hereby consents to the pledge by PHC
of all of the capital stock of Tenant to B of A, for itself and as agent and
representative of the other lenders under the New Credit Agreement, to secure
the performance by PHC of its obligations under the New Credit Agreement (a
"Permitted Transaction").

         4. RATIFICATION OF LEASE. Except as expressly modified herein, the
Lease is hereby ratified and confirmed by Landlord and Tenant in accordance with
its terms.

         IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this First Amendment to
Pioneer Hospital Lease as of the day and year first above written.

                                Paracelsus Pioneer Valley Hospital, Inc.

                                By:      /s/ ROBERT C. JOYNER
                                     ------------------------------------------
                                         Robert C. Joyner,
                                         Vice President

                                AHP of Utah, Inc.

                                By:      /s/ THOMAS T. SCHLICK
                                     ------------------------------------------
                                         Vice President

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                                                                   EXHIBIT 10.18

                            SECOND AMENDMENT TO LEASE

         This Second Amendment dated as of November 6, 1996, to LEASE AGREEMENT
dated as of May 15, 1996 (the "Lease"), as amended by a First Amendment to
Hospital Lease dated as of August 15, 1996, by and between AHP OF UTAH, INC., a
Utah corporation, as Landlord (the "Landlord") and PARACELSUS PIONEER VALLEY
HOSPITAL, INC. a Utah Corporation, as Tenant (the "Tenant").

                                    RECITALS

         A. Landlord desires to enter into that certain Letter Agreement, dated
as of October 14, 1996, by and between Landlord and Realty Executives, whereby
Landlord will sell and convey to Gus E. and Barbara A. Paulos Family Limited
Partnership approximately 1.96 acres of vacant excess land located in Salt Lake
County, Utah.

         B. Such excess land as will be conveyed by the Letter Agreement is
currently owned by Landlord and leased to Tenant pursuant to Lease.

         C. Landlord and Tenant desire hereby to provide for the amendment of
the Lease to reflect the sale of such excess land, and to ratify and confirm the
Lease as so amended.

                                    AGREEMENT

         NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the following mutual covenants and
agreements, and for other good and valuable consideration the receipt and
sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, Landlord and Tenant hereby agree
as follows:

         1. DEFINED TERMS. Unless otherwise defined in this amendment,
capitalized terms used herein which are defined in the Lease shall have the same
meanings as the meanings assigned to such terms in the Lease.

         2. AMENDMENTS TO LEASE.

                  a. The definition of "Base Rent" in Article 1 of the Lease is
         hereby amended by deleting the amount "$7,050,750" therefrom and
         substituting "$7,024,401" therefor.

                  b. The defined term "Landlord's Investment in Excess Land"
         shall be added to Article 1 and shall mean $213,283.

                  c. The definition of "Landlord's Total Investment" set forth
         in Article 1 is hereby amended by deleting the definition in its
         entirety and substituting the following therefor:

                           "Landlord's Total Investment" shall mean an amount
                           equal to the sum of (x) the Initial Investment Cost
                           plus (y) all Capital Additions Costs pertaining to
                           the Property paid for by Landlord pursuant to Section
                           11.2 of the Lease, minus (z) Landlord's Investment in
                           Excess Land.

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                  d. Section 4.4(b) is amended by deleting the amount
         "$8,914,180" therefrom and substituting "$8,880,867" therefor.

                  e. Section 14.1(b) is amended by deleting the amount
         "$57,073,000" therefrom and substituting "$56,859,717" therefor.

                  f. Section 26.2 is amended by deleting the amount
         "$63,250,000" therefrom and substituting "$63,013,633" therefor.

                  (REMAINDER OF THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY BLANK)

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         3. MISCELLANEOUS.

                  a. This Amendment is an amendment to the Lease, and the Lease,
         as hereby amended, is ratified, approved and confirmed by Landlord and
         Tenant in each and every respect. All references to the Lease in any
         other agreement, document, instrument or writing shall hereafter be
         deemed to refer to the Lease as amended hereby.

                  b. Captions used in this Amendment are for convenience of
         reference only and shall not affect the construction of this Amendment.

                  c. This Amendment shall be binding upon Landlord and Tenant,
         and their respective successors and permitted assigns, and shall inure
         to the benefit of Landlord and Tenant, and their respective successors
         and permitted assigns.

         IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Amendment as of the
date first above written.

                                       AHP OF UTAH, INC.,
                                       a Utah corporation

                                       By:      /s/ KAY L. HIDE
                                           -----------------------------------
                                                Kay L. Hide
                                                Vice President

                                       Paracelsus Pioneer Valley Hospital, Inc.
                                       a Utah Corporation

                                       By:      /s/ DEBORAH H. FRANKOVICH
                                           ------------------------------------
                                       Name:         DEBORAH H. FRANKOVICH
                                             ----------------------------------
                                       Title:        VP/TREASURER
                                              ---------------------------------

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