Jennie Stuart Medical Center

Description

About Us
Mission Statement
Jennie Stuart Medical Center is committed to excellence in service we exist to promote to preserve and to accommodate the growing healthcare needs of our community

Our Vision
Jennie Stuart Medical Center in recognition of its mission will strive passionately to pursue a culture of exceptional service and of continuous quality improvement

Our Pillar Values
At Jennie Stuart Medical Center we have adopted the following values and arranged them as pillars which are foundational to our success

People
We are committed to investing and partnering with employees and physicians by becoming an outstanding employer and healthcare provider

Service
We are committed to excellent customer service that exceeds expectations

Quality
We are committed to quality and evidencebased practices

Financial
We are committed to continuous fiscal responsibility and accountability

Growth
We are committed to promoting growth and innovation to meet the healthcare needs of our community

History

Who Was Jennie Stuart
Born Of Heartbreak
quotCountry Doctor Had Dream For Hospital Herequot

From a dream born of heartbreak and the knowledge of a serious community need Jennie Stuart Memorial Hospital had its beginning Dr Edward Stuart a pioneer physician who practiced medicine in his home in Fairview donated the money necessary for the building of the hospital soon after the turn of the century

The institution was to bear the name of his beloved wife Jennie Vaughn Stuart and the money used was Miss Jennies savings She was not only the inspiration for the hospitals beginning but she also made possible the financing

Dr Stuart born in 1828 conducted his medical practice in the shadow of the Jefferson Davis Monument The Stuart house still stands in Fairview

His work gave him a full understanding of the need for medical facilities in the area an understanding that became more personal as the result of his wifes death While in Hopkinsville on business Miss Jennie fell and suffered a broken hip

She was taken to the old Hopkinsville Infirmary where facilities were called quotprimitivequot and where several days later she died Himself a cripple Dr Stuart laboriously had climbed steep stairs daily to visit his wife

During his visits Miss Jennie frequently asked Dr Stuart if he still had her keys which she usually kept tied around her waist He indeed had the keys After her death and with the help of a relative Dr Stuart entered Miss Jennies room at their Fairview home It was a room she had kept locked and had spent much time quotjust puttering aroundquot as she would say The object of her quotputteringquot was found to be her savings

Miss Jennie apparently had saved every penny she had ever received including earnings from selling eggs butter and milk and from her investments The saved money included many gold pieces that the doctor had given her The gold pieces were found hidden in gas pipes in the back of a closet other money was found behind pictures in the house It was all labeled with dates and amounts and totaled approximately 25000 It was that amount with some additional funds and with his other possessions Dr Stuart gave toward the construction of a new hospital Jennie Stuart Memorial Hospital

The hospital was incorporated in 1913 and was completed in 1914 It was a small brick building and was furnished with equipment from Dr Stuarts office and from gifts to the hospital Miss Wanda Williams served as the hospitals first superintendent Miss Williams a pioneer nurse and teacher wrote of her memories of those early years She wrote of Dr Stuart planting trees on the hospital lawn and of him transplanting roses from Miss Jennies garden

The hospital Miss Williams directed included twelve private rooms and four wards of four beds each Beds in wards were 300 a day and private rooms were 450 Miss Williams called it a place where quotthe orphan child or the poor man or woman may have the same care that is provided for their more fortunate fellowsquot

Dr Stuart was born near Antioch Church His maternal grandmother Mary Shanklin was the midwife at the birth of Jefferson Davis president of the Confederacy Dr Stuart graduated from St Louis Medical College in 1851 and began his medical practice in the Crofton area After two years Dr Stuart moved his practice to Fairview and continued it there for more than 67 years He was a Methodist a Mason and a Democrat He and Jane quotJenniequot Vaughn had two children May who died in her 20s and Willie who died in infancy