Saint Francis: More Than A Century Of Caring
Since its founding in 1897 by the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Chambéry, Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center has developed a national reputation for medical excellence, technological innovation and compassionate care for its patients. One of Connecticut's largest hospitals, it is the largest Catholic hospital in New England
With clinical concentrations in cardiology, oncology, women's health services, rehabilitation, and orthopedics, Saint Francis provides progressive medicine to the Greater Hartford community and Southern New England region. The Hospital is a leader in the use of clinical information technology and has the most advanced imaging equipment available. Saint Francis has been named among the top 100 hospitals and the top 15 major teaching hospitals in the United States seven times by Solucient, a leading healthcare research firm.
When it opened in Hartford's Asylum Hill neighborhood, Saint Francis accommodated 30 patients in its wards. Its first administrator was a nun from France, Mother Valencia, who barely spoke English. Mother Valencia and the other sisters came with less than $10 among them. Strongly championing the new Hospital, a three-story former seminary donated by Bishop Tierney, physicians themselves went door to door seeking donations. While most patients were charged a fee of $15 per week, others received discounted rates because of their low income, and many were given care on credit.
From its inception, the Hospital has responded to the region's healthcare needs, notably in providing critical care during the 1903 outbreak of scarlet fever when healthcare workers endangered their own lives to attend to victims; likewise, in 1919, it was designated an Army Reserve Hospital. When World War II began, Saint Francis was the first local hospital to initiate a Volunteer Red Cross Nurses Aid course.
Following World War II, the staff began a new era that focused heavily on patient care as well as physician and nursing training. During the 1950s outbreak of polio, it was first in the area to establish a post-polio program. By the mid `50s, the Hospital had established 11 separate specialized departments including pathology, radiology, outpatient services, cardiology, and obstetrics.
Throughout the next four decades, Saint Francis continued to grow and enhance its services and programs. A laboratory for cardiopulmonary research, units for intensive care, coronary care and neonatal intensive care, centers for diabetes and ambulatory care as well as a section for oncology were established. To reflect this expanding breadth of service, the Hospital's name was changed to Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center in 1976.
In 1990, Saint Francis formed an affiliation with Mount Sinai Hospital, believed to be the first such collaboration between a Catholic hospital and a Jewish hospital in U.S. history, culminating in a formal corporate merger in 1995.
A significant development in the evolution of the cardiology program at Saint Francis was the establishment of the Hoffman Heart Institute in 1991. Named in recognition of a grant from the Maximilian E. and Marion O. Hoffman Foundation, the Institute focuses on areas of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, as well as the rehabilitation of patients with the disease. Cardio-thoracic surgeons perform approximately 1,400 open-heart surgeries annually, routinely more than any other hospital in the region. Saint Francis has been named one of the nation's 100 Top Hospitals for cardiovascular services by Solucient on three occasions. The facility has recently been renamed the Hoffman Heart and Vascular Institute of Connecticut.
In 1993, the Saint Francis/Mount Sinai Regional Cancer Center was opened. The facility, made possible through a significant contribution from the Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation, today houses the latest technology such as the state-of-the-art CyberKnife® system and chemotherapeutic facilities. Today, disease-specific services for patients with various types of cancer are organized to provide a multi-disciplinary treatment approach.
The recently renamed Mount Sinai Rehabilitation Hospital, a comprehensive medical facility with major programs for stroke, brain and spinal cord injuries, neuromuscular disease, orthopedics, and general rehabilitation services, was opened in 1995.
Greatly advancing women's health services, the John M. Gibbons Pavilion opened in 1996. Located in the Pavilion are fourteen Labor-Delivery-Recovery rooms, an antepartum evaluation and diagnostic center, and a 28-bed neonatal intensive care unit. Approximately 3,000 deliveries are performed here each year. The Pavilion also contains a fully equipped Ultrasound Laboratory.
To further enhance women's health services at Saint Francis, the Comprehensive Breast Health Center was established in 1999. As part of Saint Francis' outpatient mission, this Center eases the diagnosis process for women. The Center became the first in Connecticut to offer CAD (Computer Aided Detection), which helps to identify hard-to-detect forms of breast cancer.
Throughout the 1990s, Saint Francis continued to expand its continuum of care by affiliating with neighboring healthcare institutions. In 1995, Bristol Hospital and Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center affiliated; and in 1996, an affiliation agreement was signed with St. Mary's Hospital in Waterbury. Later affiliations included the Alcohol and Drug Recovery Center and the Suffield VNA, which recently developed into a relationship with Connecticut VNA Partners.
Throughout the 1990s and into the new century, the Hospital placed great emphasis on computer information technology. With the installation of a Computer Physician Order Entry (CPOE) system, digital x-rays, and a robotic pharmacy, patient safety was enhanced and Saint Francis became a national leader in technology and innovation.
Christopher M. Dadlez was named President and CEO of Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center in late 2004. Among his early accomplishments was the development of a mission statement that reflects the Hospital's commitment to health, healing, and spiritual comfort.
In 2005, the Cancer Center and Emergency Room were expanded to better accommodate patient volume and needs. A 700-car employee parking garage was opened in early 2006. Renovations were also made to post-partum rooms with the introduction of family-centered maternity care at Saint Francis.
In 2007, a number of new technologies and services were brought to Saint Francis. Robotic surgery was introduced using the da Vinci® Surgical System, allowing the surgical team to perform minimally invasive hysterectomies. A biplane angiography system was added, utilizing the full digital capability of biplane imaging. Saint Francis was also one of the first hospitals in the nation to acquire the Dual Source, 128-Slice CT Scanner, which employs two x-rays that give precise images of the beating heart in a matter of seconds.
The Connecticut Joint Replacement Institute (CJRI) was launched in late 2007, consisting of ten fellowship-trained surgeons dedicated to joint replacement surgeries. The Stroke Center at Saint Francis and the Bariatric Center at Saint Francis, which received approval as a Bariatric Center of Excellence, were also launched in 2007.
Saint Francis recently announced the largest gift in its 110-year history. Nancy and Daniel O'Connell made a commitment to donate their estate, an estimated $5 million, to the Hospital in honor of their late son John. In recognition of this generous donation, the new patient tower will be named the John T. O'Connell Tower. The ten-story tower will house a new Emergency Department, new replacement operating rooms and patient rooms, an orthopedic unit dedicated to the Connecticut Joint Replacement Institute (CJRI) and a new rooftop helipad. The tower is expected to begin operations in 2010.
Saint Francis Care also celebrated the opening of two new medical office facilities in Enfield and East Hartford. Both facilities are 30,000-square-feet of state-of-the art space and serve as a home to primary care physicians, medical and surgical specialists and ancillary services.
Although great emphasis will continue to be placed on utilizing the latest technology and procedures, Saint Francis will remain steadfast in the mission upon which it was founded over a century ago. These include unwavering commitment to excellence, compassion and a reverence for the spirituality of each individual - the values that underlie the basic desire to help those in need.