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The wreck of a B & O passenger train in 1895 just a few miles west of Chillicothe brought to the attention of a group of women the great need for a hospital in Chillicothe. Some people lost their lives and many were badly injured in that wreck. It became apparent that there were no appropriate facilities in which to care for them. Many were taken into private homes. Also, the old building out on Distillery Road known as the Pest House formerly used for isolation of small pox cases, was hastily opened, cleaned out and filled with cots, but in those horse and buggy days, this proved to be too far away for the purpose of emergency care.
Miss Jane Welsh, Mrs. Mary C. Manley, Mrs. Alexander Renick, Mrs. S. H. Mosher and Mrs. Lucille Hinton, under the guidance and urging of Dr. G. E. Robbins, went to work to solicit bedding, furniture, and money to start an emergency hospital in a small brick house at 107 North Bridge Street, purchased at a price of $2,500 from Mr. Marcus Boggs. Through popular subscription, baby shows, bazaars, and one day's proceeds from the Chillicothe Street Railway, the original cost of $2,500 was raised.
Chillicothe was the first to have women streetcar conductors. The late Joseph Meyers, President of the Street Railway, made the following proposition to the promoters of the hospital: If they would furnish young women chosen from the various churches to act as streetcar conductors for Fair Day, he would give one whole day's proceeds to the fund. The offer was immediately accepted and plans were made to include a bazaar, along with lunch and dinner, with entertainment to follow. The county was solicited for donations of vegetables, fruits, and fancy articles. Women from the churches furnished all supplies and labor. However, the evening of the Fair, a severe wind and rainstorm prevented further activities, but even with that loss, the day's proceeds from the streetcars netted more than $1,800.
On June 27, 1895, the hospital was incorporated. On January 1, 1896, the Emergency Hospital was dedicated and opened for use. This hospital was truly a community project. By 1900, the use of the hospital had grown so that the women felt the need to ask interested men to help with business matters. It was decided to ask each of the nine churches to send a representative to form a Board of Incorporators, now the Board of Trustees. The women who had become known as the Board of Managers, now the Women's Board, continued to look after the furnishings, food, and fund raising for the hospital.
In order to supply a small annual income for the hospital, Mrs. Mary Manley and other members of the Women's Board of Managers made a list of 1,000 citizens who promised to pay one dollar a year. In the beginning, every church, through subscription of members, gave a yearly sum to support the hospital.
Within 15 years, the Bridge Street building became inadequate and, in 1910, two acres of land were purchased at the site of the old Methodist Cemetery on the corner of Cherry and Chestnut Streets. The original construction had a capacity of 25 beds. By 1917, the first addition was constructed and completed in 1919, which provided 13 more rooms. In 1923, in order to utilize all available space in the hospital, a house on the corner of Vine and Chestnut was purchased from the Sosman family for use as a nurses' home. Until then, nurses had been living in the attic of the hospital.
With the increase of population, another addition was completed in 1932, bringing the total beds to 50 with 10 bassinets. It was during this time that the Ohio Health Department required the segregation of mothers and newborn babies from the rest of the hospital patients. Prior to this time, instead of a newborn nursery, the babies were kept in the mother's room and the dresser drawer was the bassinet.
The money for all these additions and equipment was raised by popular subscription, unrestricted endowment funds, and substantial gifts from public-spirited citizens and local industry.
In the 1940's, when a survey showed that additional services and hospital beds were needed, the Board of Trustees, by means of a formal fund drive, raised $70,000 from local citizens and industry. With this and federal Hill-Burton funds, a 50 bed addition replaced the antiquated section of the building.
At the June 1949 meeting of the Women's Board, Mrs. William Scott McKell, President, suggested that this organization should have a Junior organization to assist when the new addition was opened. Mrs. William Kramer was head of this project. After consulting with Mrs. William Coppel (who had been a member of a Twig of Children's Hospital in Columbus) and making trips to Columbus to study the workings of the Twigs, Mrs. Kramer founded four Guilds. On November 1, 1949, the Guild Association was formed. The purpose of the Guilds was three-fold: 1) to promote good public relations; 2) to give service to the hospital; and 3) to raise money.
Since that time, many volunteers who did not wish to belong to a Guild have joined the Guild members in working for the hospital. In 1972, the Volunteer Advisory Council was formed to set standards and to coordinate all volunteer work in the hospital. To date, the Volunteer Advisory Council donates all Sugarloaf Gift Shop proceeds to the hospital and the scholarship fund and the volunteers donate 36,000 plus hours to the hospital annually.
In 1955, the Ford Foundation donated $52,000 to the hospital. Crowded conditions and unsatisfactory location of the laboratory and the x-ray departments prompted the Board of Trustees to employ an architect to develop a long-range program. Money was raised through industry and interested individuals, and the use of additional Hill-Burton money. In the summer of 1960, 50 beds were completed and various services were relocated.
In 1964, the first building (circa 1910) was demolished and 50 more beds were added at a cost of $520,000. Included in this addition was a physical therapy department. Funds for its equipment were donated by the Ross County Society for Crippled Children and Adults. This wing was built entirely without public subscription. Funds were obtained from Hill-Burton, donations from industry, and interested individuals.
The continuing growth of Chillicothe Hospital, new concepts in medicine, and the care of the patients brought on the relocation in an all-new and better hospital. On December 31, 1973, the Chillicothe Hospital moved into the new Medical Center Hospital with a capacity of 230 beds. An additional 15 beds were added in 1983 for psychiatric patients, bringing total beds to 245.
The 1980's brought about many significant changes in healthcare. In order to effectively meet the challenge of those changes, the Board of Trustees of Medical Center Hospital chose to affiliate with Mount Carmel Health in 1986. By combining resources with this 816 bed multi-hospital system, the hospital was able to expand patient services and technological capabilities.
One of the most significant changes in healthcare to occur in the 1980's was the great demand for outpatient services. In 1989, Medical Center Hospital broke ground for a $19 million renovation and expansion project that would expand all outpatient services. The project was funded with the sale of tax-exempt bonds.
From an emergency hospital established in 1895, Adena Health System has developed into a 245-bed, full-service, multi-specialty facility in 1996. At one time serving residents only in the immediate area, it now serves more than 160,000 people in Ross and seven contiguous counties.
Within the hospital, a highly trained medical staff composed primarily of Board Certified Physicians, has access to a wide range of technologies. These resources include: MRI, CAT Scanner, YAG Laser, CO2 Laser, Vidoearthroscopy, TMJ Arthroscopy, Cardiac Catheterization, Same Day Surgery, Endoscopy, Special Care Nursery, Echocardiography including color flow doppler, Non-Invasive Vascular Imaging, Outpatient Chemotherapy and radiation therapy utilizing a state of the art Linear Accelerator.
Supporting the medical staff and these technologies is a staff of more than 1000 highly skilled and professional nursing and ancillary personnel.
As a fully accredited regional health care facility, Adena Health System serves as a clinical site for students in a diverse range of educational programs including General Internal Medicine, nursing, medical technology, radiographic technology, respiratory therapy, and physical therapy.
Maintaining clinical excellence and insuring hospital responsiveness to regional needs is our challenge now and into the twenty-first century. Adena Health System is working proactively to commit the resources necessary to provide our patients with the professional staff, technology, and facilities that are needed to meet this challenge.
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