History of Sarasota Memorial Hospital
Humble Beginnings
The hospital is the waking reality of "the dream of many made possible
by the intensive efforts of a few and the generosity of all," wrote
the Sarasota Herald (Nov. 2, 1925) to announce the opening of the first
modern hospital in Sarasota County.
|
|
In tracing the history of Sarasota Memorial Hospital, we find that it was,
and is, an institution constantly growing and changing to meet the community’s
health care needs. From simple canvas tents to the burgeoning modern
campus we have today, Sarasota Memorial Hospital owes its reputation,
success and very existence to the efforts of its champions through seven
decades.
In 1921, faced with a growing need for organized health care, residents
of Sarasota began raising funds to build a hospital. Local residents, especially
women, worked tirelessly until the money was raised to begin construction.
While the women conducted their yearlong fund-raising campaign, a "tent
hospital" and a temporary six-bed facility treated patients and emergency
cases. It was said that no businessman dared to venture down Main Street
without first pulling his pockets inside out, thereby making a public statement
that he had no more to give for the hospital.
|
|
On Nov. 2, 1925, the 32-bed Sarasota Hospital opened on Hawthorne Street.
It cost $40,000 to build and was operated by the Sarasota County Welfare
Association.
The following years brought several changes to the new facility. A school
for nurses was established in 1926. At that time, the hospital only had
10 employees to work all three shifts In 1927, construction on a hospital
annex began. It was completed later that year and, since the annex moved
the hospital into the city limits, the facility was turned over to the
City of Sarasota and was renamed Sarasota Municipal Hospital.
With the onset of the Great Depression, Sarasota experienced a period of
economic trouble during which few improvements were made to the hospital.
However, when the economy rebounded, the hospital would once again start
to grow. By the 1930s, Sarasota Municipal Hospital had expanded to 100
beds, a nurses’ home, garage, operating room and an annex which accommodated
patient overflow.
|
|
The 1940s saw still more changes. By 1946, other improvements included
a surgical suite, enlarged garage, a kitchen and dining room, a new concrete
block wing and the first air-conditioning unit.
In 1948, an Auxiliary was formed to provide extra services and badly needed
equipment. One hundred women made up the first group of Auxilians and would
help to renovate the children’s ward and nurses’ home.
In 1949, an Enabling Act was passed by the Florida Legislature that created
a special hospital district. Following on the heels of that act, the Hospital
Board was formed. Nine local residents were appointed by the governor to
serve on the new board. The community hospital’s long-standing public,
not-for-profit mission was not only reaffirmed; it was grounded in state
law. And its policy makers were now accountable to those who benefited
from the hospital’s mission — the residents of Sarasota County.
Post War Shifts
75 Years of Community Service
In 1950, Don Laurent began a 25-year career as an administrator of Sarasota
Municipal Hospital. In that year there were fewer than 75 employees and
30 physicians. The original hospital, which had been structured like a
house, was slowly being converted to medical uses. A kitchen became a laboratory,
a broom closet a dark room, and outside wooden stairs led to the operating
room.
A constant resident of the hospital during this time was a large black
cat named Casper. It was rumored that Casper was welcomed because he kept
other unwanted, four-legged creatures at bay. In later years, Casper’s
descendants would still be spotted around the hospital.
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals (JCAH) was formed in
1952 and the hospital received its first of many accreditations two years
later. That began a relationship with the independent, national organization
that would objectively rate how Sarasota Memorial manages and delivers
health care, and provide a benchmark for improving services. In 1953, the
nurses’ home was converted for hospital use, increasing the number
of beds to 125.
In 1954, Sarasota Municipal Hospital was deeded to the Sarasota County
Public Hospital Board and renamed Sarasota Memorial Hospital in honor of
the veterans from both world wars.
On October 16, 1955, dedication ceremonies were held for the new south
wing of the five-story Sarasota Memorial Hospital, which now boasted 225
beds, including those in the old hospital. The facility had the distinction
of being one of the few fully air-conditioned hospitals in the South. During
the 1950s, services would expand to include food service, a blood bank,
tumor clinic, physical therapy, obstetrics, pediatric and psychiatric units.
Despite extensive growth, the hospital simply could not keep up with the
demand for health care. By 1956, the front steps were routinely marked
with "no vacancy" signs and hospital corridors were filled with
patients. Near the end of the decade, a new five-story wing was built and
in use.
Techhnological and Economic Evolution
Technological and economic revolutions in the 1960s brought a new perspective
to health care. An infusion of dollars from medical insurance coverage
and government entitlement programs fueled the hospital’s new ventures,
including the move into the computer age with the addition of an IBM Ramac
system in 1962. The hospital’s childcare center for employees’ children
was a first in the state; it would be 20 years before other hospitals would
routinely provide this service.
|
|
In 1964, the Century Club began with 20 members who each pledged $100 a
year to purchase unbudgeted equipment for the hospital. Throughout the
1960s the hospital continued to expand with such new services as ambulant
care and cardiac intensive care. The Retter wing was completed in 1969
and made possible through a $1 million gift from Mr. and Mrs. Earl Retter.
It housed 92 beds, a medical library and conference room. The hospital’s
Chiller Building was also built during this decade. Amid this booming
growth, the hospital’s original 32-bed building was razed.
In the 1970s, Sarasota Memorial continued adding new services, including
cardiac catheterization, ambulatory outpatient care, round-the-clock food
services and the EMI brain scanner. The East Tower was completed in 1976
and allowed patients to be transported to or from the hospital by helicopter.
The Sarasota Memorial Hospital Foundation was also founded in this decade,
raising more than $1 million in pledges and gifts in its first year.
A hospital employee since 1958, H.J. Floyd was named Executive Director
in 1975. During his 10 years in this role, he helped lead the hospital
into an age where technology was changing every day.
The 1980s brought two new perspectives as the country focused on wellness
and for-profit hospital companies defined health care as a competitive
marketplace. Sarasota Memorial responded by stretching its traditional
mission and campus to include new psychiatric and geriatric facilities.
A new Open Heart Surgery Center opened in 1983 and reached the 100-patient
mark within four months. The Waldemere Tower opened, followed by the Cape
Outpatient Surgery Center, and Lakeside Pavilion (for mental health care)
pushing the hospital’s bed capacity to 825. An MRI unit was purchased,
a second heart cath lab was built and laser surgery was initiated.
In 1985, Philip Beauchamp replaced the retiring Jack Floyd and became president
and CEO of Sarasota Memorial Hospital. Beauchamp emphasized strategic planning,
upgrading services and increasing patient comfort levels. Alliances and
collaboration with other providers brought financial stability and increased
purchasing power to the hospital as the staff turned its attention to delivering
care as a component of guest relations.
Prepping for the 21st Century.
|
|
In 1992, Michael Covert became the next president and CEO of Sarasota Memorial
Hospital, bringing a new vision and energies to lead the hospital into
the new millennium. Sarasota Memorial Hospital has evolved into an extensive,
integrated health care system under his direction. The Critical Care
Center opened in 1993, as one of the most technologically advanced centers
of its kind in the Southeast. Scores of nursing and allied health care
students study here. Services for women and children have been a particular
focus in recent years, with the addition of The Breast Health Center,
expanded perinatal and neonatal services, and an early intervention program
for infants and young children with developmental delays.
1997 the area of computerized medical records begins as CareVision records
software begins running on a patient care unit. It is the first of the
patient care application in the United States. It is also among the first
hospitals in the world to convert its imaging services to an electronic
digital format, increasing the speed and accuracy of results for physicians
and patients.
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates nominates Sarasota Memorial for a Computerworld
Smithsonian Award, which recognizes the innovative use of information technology.
1998 Jo Mills Reis/Urgent Care Center opens to offer family friendly care
in an atmosphere less stressful than traditional Emergency Rooms.
In 1999 Sarasota Memorial becomes one of the first hospitals in the nation
to use a minimally invasive robot device, called Zeus, in heart surgery.
Sarasota Memorial is also the first hospital in Florida to use ASESOP robots
in laparascopic procedures. Sarasota Memorial is also one of the first
hospitals in the state to use Photodynamic nonthermal laser light to treat
esophageal cancer,
certain lung cancers and Barrett’s Esophagus under an FDA clinical
trial. Sarasota Memorial has conducted almost 200 clinical trials in the
past 10 years.
Sarasota Memorial’s reputation in collaborative research continues
to grow among pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. The Clinical
Research Center has participated in over 200 clinical trials in the past
10 years and is regularly sought as a testing site for promising technologies
and information systems.
The year 2000 brought several exciting events! Duncan Finlay, M.D. was
named President and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Finlay joined Sarasota
Memorial Hospital as a physician in 1972. In 1988, he was named chief of
staff. By 1996 he was appointed vice president for medical affairs and
chief medical officer continuing on in 2000 to become the hospital’s
CEO. November, 2000 marked Sarasota Memorial Hospital’s 75th anniversary.
Today, because of the guidance of past and present administrators and dedicated
board members, the hospital has positioned itself to meet future, as well
as current, health care needs of the Sarasota community. The values and
commitment of its founders reflect in the respect Sarasota Memorial Hospital
commands in the health care industry and echo through this enduring, vital
partnership with our community. |
|
