St. Mary's Community Hospital: History.

Our History

St. Mary’s Hospital opened on February 13, 1927. The Sisters of St. Francis, from Maryville, Missouri owned and operated the hospital. The original 35-bed, 4-story structure, which cost an estimated $300,000, was equipped with an x-ray machine and $25,000 worth of modern medical and surgical equipment.

In the first ten years, the hospital admitted 9,580 patients and the need for expansion was evident. Mother M. Augustine, with the help of Sister M. Ursula, negotiated the contract for the construction of the new 15-bed north wing at an estimated cost of $85,000. A Chapel designed in the Roman Basilica style was included. The formal dedication was in October of 1937.

The outdoor Grotto of Lourdes was erected and blessed by the Most Reverend Louis B. Kucera on October 11, 1942.

Again, a steady rise in patients prompted the building of another addition that the Most Reverend James Casey dedicated on May 15, 1960. This addition is known as the South wing and included additional medical-surgical beds, obstetrics with a nursery, laboratory, and x-ray technology as well as a surgical suite.

In 1979, the hospital began a $1.85 million remodeling project. This project included a new emergency suite, laboratory, and respiratory and physical therapy areas. Additional patient rooms were added as well as emergency parking stalls.

The Sisters of St. Francis, Colorado took over responsibility of the hospital from the Sisters of St. Francis, Maryville, Missouri on October 1, 1983. In 1988, the Sisters of St. Francis, Colorado transferred the hospital to St. Elizabeth Health Systems. Then on December 1, 1997, St. Mary’s Hospital became affiliated with Catholic Health Initiatives.

With changing technologies and medical advancements, the demand for inpatient beds diminished while the demand for outpatient care services increased. Thus in 2001, St. Mary’s Hospital commenced a $2.4 million renovation project. The purpose of this renovation project was multifaceted.

The first phase of construction focused on patient comfort and energy conservation through the installation of a new roofing system, new windows, and a new heating and cooling system. A new entrance, business office, lobby, and emergency parking were created to offer a greater deal of convenience and comfort for patients and visitors. A new religious shrine was placed where the old west entrance had been located.

The second phase of this project focused primarily on patient care, comfort, and confidentiality. In the past, inpatient care utilized the third, fourth, and fifth floors, which could accommodate more than 100 inpatients at one time. With the trend away from inpatient care, all inpatient care is provided on fourth floor with a capacity for 18 patients at any given time. Sixteen rooms are private rooms that provide a greater degree of privacy and comfort to our patients. One room is semiprivate and is used for outpatient treatments and observation patients. The labor-delivery-recovery (LDR) was remodeled to create a large primary LDR, and a fully functional backup LDR.