Barstow Community Hospital

History

From its inception Barstow Community Hospital has been a success story of community commitment Prior to Barstow Community Hospital BCH being built local area patients in critical condition were treated at the Marine Base hospital while those who were deemed able to travel were sent to hospitals more than 90 miles away in the San Bernardino area From 1953 to 1956 the Barstow Lions Club along with the Firemans Service Club raised funds through the HillBurton Act to build the hospital Through these efforts funds were donated by private citizens and raised through various fundraising activities until the goal was reached Fundraisers included civic leaders going doortodoor soliciting donations localarea waitresses donating their tips one day a week to the cause among other fundraising activities Other civic groups such as the Barstow Rotary Club donated the landscaping for the new hospital

In the summer and fall of 1957 Barstow Community Hospital was both a symbol of pride and a source of embarrassment to the area The construction of the 504000 facility was complete and dedicated in June of 1957 however the hospital remained vacant for more than six months because the hospital did not have enough operating money to open its doors The hospital needed 65000 to cover operating expenses for 90 days This hospital saga was picked up by media nationwide including the Los Angeles Times and Life Magazine Funds to open BCH were not provided until local voters gave the city legal authority to run the facility in a November 26 1957 election In January 1958 Barstow Community Hospital a onestory 26bed facility the current 100 nursing wing opened its doors to the community

For a more indepth article on how the community built the initial hospital click here A Community Unites to Build a Hospital

From 1962 to 1974 the hospital underwent continuous transformations as the hospital management tried to provide increased services for the growing community In 1962 hospital management oversaw the construction of the 200 nursing wing the original emergency room chapel and kitchen increasing bed capacity to 40 Starting in 1966 and completed in 1968 further expansion added the 300 nursing wing including the OB area lobby and current administration area extending the hospital capacity to its current 56 beds Further development of the facilities took place in 1974 with the additions of the medical records medical staff lounge library and expansion of the emergency room Also included in this expansion were the relocation and modernization of the radiology department and the administrative and business office functions

The 1980s did not witness as much hospital construction as the 1960s and 70s did however the era was important to the continued expansion of services provided by the hospital In 1982 and 1986 management added the intensive care unit and CT scanner area respectively Renovation did not stop in the 1980s In 1994 management made significant improvements to the baby delivery services and outpatient surgery The maternity wing added a labor delivery recovery room LDR room to offer more of a home atmosphere for the birthing process The outpatient surgery area added four suites for surgery preparation and recovery and a waiting room to meet the demands of the popular less serious surgeries In 1995 the hospital completed a multimilliondollar upgrade to the emergency room doubling its capacity to provide area residents with a stateoftheart 24hour emergency room

Besides the many building and technology upgrades hospital management has seen several transformations since 1958 as well The City of Barstow managed the hospital from its opening until the employee strike of 1981 The strike was the impetus for the city to seek a professional health care management contractor Toward the end of 1981 the city hired HCA to take over management of the hospital HCA managed the hospital until 1988 when Adventist Health Systems the parent company of Loma Linda University Hospital assumed the role of hospital management for five years In 1993 Community Health Systems Inc based in Brentwood Tenn signed a longterm agreement with the City of Barstow to take over the operation of the hospital With emphasis on patientcentered care quality improvements and increased efficiency Community Health Systems Inc propelled the hospital to the pinnacle of the health care industry In 1996 and again in 1997 Barstow Community Hospital was named one of the quot100 Top Hospitals in the Nationquot by Modern Healthcare magazine