Avera Sacred Heart

Description

About Avera Sacred Heart Hospital
Since 1897 Avera Sacred Heart Hospital has positioned itself as a leader in the health care field Today Avera Sacred Heart Hospital is a widely recognized regional healthcare facility serving more than 120000 residents in a 15county area in southeastern South Dakota and northeastern Nebraska

OUR MISSION
Avera is a health ministry rooted in the Gospel Our mission is to make a positive impact in the lives and health of persons and communities by providing quality services guided by Christian values

OUR VISION
Avera Sacred Heart will be recognized as the preferred regional hospital and comprehensive health service network for southeast South Dakota and northeast Nebraska

We will build for the future a model of excellence and integrity through our Catholic health care ministry our people services quality and financial stewardship

We will collaborate with our regions communities physicians and other health care providers in planning and delivering services

History

OUR HISTORY

Avera Sacred Heart Opens in 1897

Avera Sacred Heart Hospitals commitment to care began more than a century ago when Sacred Heart Hospital first opened its doors on November 4 1897 The first patient was admitted four days later

In 1897 Bishop Thomas OGorman prevailed upon the Benedictine Sisters of Sacred Heart Convent in Yankton to enter an entirely new field of service the care of the sick and injured That challenge was quickly met and the Benedictine Sisters who had been primarily trained as teachers soon became nurses In the beginning Sacred Heart Hospital was a 30bed hospital located in a remodeled building that had been erected a decade earlier as a girls academy and also used as an Indian school and orphanage

New Hospital Built in 1912

Due to increasing need for healthcare services for the people of the region it became evident that a larger more efficient facility was needed Ground was broken for a new hospital on October 2 1912 and the new 80bed facility wad dedicated in May 1915 More additions were made as the healthcare needs continued to grow

Benet Home for Nurses Opens in 1949

The construction of the Benet Home for Nurses was completed in May 1949 This new building relieved pressure on the main hospital building and provided living quarters for 170 nurses and students The nursing school graduated its last class of threeyear diploma nurses on August 7 1964

Sister James Nursing Home
With the addition of Benet Hall space was finally available in the hospital to fulfill the Sisters dream of establishing a unit to provide care for the elderly The fourth floor was eventually named Sister James Nursing Home in honor of Sister James Souhrada a Benedictine Sister who devoted her personal and professional life to the service of the elderly

Gavins Point Dam Dedicated in 1957

The construction of Gavins Point Dam officially dedicated on August 18 1957 brought scores of new families to Yankton and Sacred Heart Hospital At times all beds were full and patients had to be cared for in the hallways It was also the Baby Boom era and Sister Blanche would have thirty or more infants in the nursery at one time

In 1960 the need for expansion was obvious Hospital officials determined that the old hospital was solidly built and decided to remodel this structure and add another wing Groundbreaking for the 15 million project took place on September 8 1963 The addition included 64 patient beds a 24bassinet nursery new surgical suite and intensive care unit and other much needed improvements The dedication of the Lshaped wing now named the Benedictine Center took place on September 5 1965

Todays Sacred Heart Hospital Built in 1981

As the needs of the area continued to change renovations and additions were made again in 1971 Finally because of everincreasing safety requirements and government regulations it became evident that a new hospital building was needed

The new Sacred Heart Hospital a 144bed structure was the third building in the institutions first 84 years On November 21 1981 the first of 85 patients were transferred into the new facility At this time there were 60 physicians on active medical staff in addition to over 600 fulltime and parttime employees In January 1981 Yanktons two physician groups merged and began operation as the Yankton Medical Clinic In June 1982 the first Computerized Tomography CT Scanner was delivered

Construction of the new hospital made it possible to use the vacated space in the former facility to increase care for the elderly Between 1981 and 1986 Sister James Nursing Home grew to a total of 113 residents occupying the third and fourth floors of the Benedictine Center In 1993 Sister James received Medicare certification

Avera Sacred Heart Adopts New Name in 1996

In 1996 Sacred Heart Hospital became affiliated with the Presentation Health System In 1997 the Benedictine and Presentation Sisters recognized a need to rename the health system to reflect the health ministries of its partners and the Presentation Health System officially changed their name to Avera Health on June 1 1998 In September 1998 Sacred Heart officially became Avera Sacred Heart Hospital The name Avera rhymes with Sarah is derived from a Latin word avere which means to be well

Avera Sacred Heart Expands Senior Services in 1998

In 1998 Avera Sacred Heart began planning a new project to expand senior services The dream was finalized in April 1999 when hospital officials announced the purchase of land for a senior living complex Located on a 40acre parcel of land overlooking the beautiful scenic Missouri River Valley along Highway 52 the property was purchased from the Benedictine Sisters and was named Majestic Bluffs in honor of the spiritual and geographical influence Groundbreaking for the senior living community took place on November 10 1999 In May 2000 113 residents moved into the new replacement facility for the skilled nursing home now named Avera Sister James Care Center Construction was completed on assisted and independent living apartments in 2001 Majestic Bluffs also include eight townhomes located along the picturesque lake and walking path


On June 1 2000 seventyfive employees from Avera Yankton Care Center were officially welcomed into the Avera Sacred Heart family The agreement expanded Avera Sacred Hearts licensed number of longterm care beds from 113 to 187

In January 2003 the Avera Sacred Heart Rehab amp Wellness Institute or RWI since renamed Avera Surgery Center opened its doors on the former Benet Hall site The modern three story building houses a new Avera Sacred Heart Wellness Center two therapeutic pools cardiac and pulmonary rehab outpatient physical therapy as well as the Garden Spot Cafeacute Physician office space is located on the second floor and is currently occupied by a podiatrist and physiatrist The first floor of the Surgery Center then became a stateoftheart Same Day Surgery Center the only outpatient surgical facility in the Yankton region with physician anesthesiologists and immediate access to the full resources of Avera Sacred Heart Hospital

Avera Sacred Hearts New Emergency Department opened in 2006

In the Summer of 2006 Avera Sacred Hearts new Emergency Department opened its doors The new addition doubled the number of patient rooms and provide the latest in emergency care technology Patients are now registered at the bedside and ambulance patients arrive in a separate entrance from walkin patients

As construction of the new Emergency Department was completed construction of the new Avera Professional Office Pavilion began and was completed in the summer of 2007 This new 60000 squarefoot facility located adjacent to the Avera Surgery Center in the center of the Avera Sacred Heart campus houses

Physician offices

Avera Sacred Heart Campus of the Sanford School of Medicine of The University of South Dakota 3rdyear Medical Student program

Medical Library

116seat auditorium conference and meeting rooms

Twostory atrium for gatherings and educational events