Oaklawn Hospital

Description

About Us
Oaklawn was founded in 1925 as a 12bed hospital in a residential home funded by a group of visionary philanthropists Now more than eight decades later weve evolved into a highly regarded regional health care organization licensed for 77 acute care beds and a 17bed inpatient psychiatric unit Weve continued to be an independently owned nonprofit hospital with our main campus residing on the same site as the original hospital providing facilities equipment and technology that are usually only found at larger health systems We enjoy a reputation for advancing medicine and providing compassionate personal care Our service area includes Calhoun County and parts of Branch and Eaton counties We have an active courtesy and consulting medical staff of more than 150 physicians representing 30 specialties

Our Mission
We will provide personal accessible and highquality care to improve the health and well being of the communities we serve

Our Vision
To provide personalized quality care
To exceed the expectations of our patients
To lead the improvement of health in the communities we serve
To provide access to integrated health care
To remain locally governed and organizationally independent
To be a responsible corporate citizen
To provide charitable care to those in need
To attract and retain a diverse team of quality physicians and employees
To be financially strong
To continually improve
To provide excellent facilities and technologies
To be a hospital of choice to patients physicians and employees
To be a leader in information technology
To be cost competitive
To remain an integral component of the downtown
To communicate clearly and effectively at all levels

Our Statement of Values
We commit that through our policies and actions we will provide a climate that reflects these values which are vital towards implementing the mission of Oaklawn Hospital
RespectDemonstrate the utmost respect for the health needs and treatment
choices of all patients and the service needs of coworkers visitors and
physicians treating all with kindness dignity and respect

Integrity Embrace complete honesty and integrity to all with whom we come
in contact

DiversityFoster a sensitivity and respect toward the diversity of
individuals

QualityThoughtfully perform responsibilities with a dedication to achieving
the highest level of quality possible

CollaborationCollaborate with others using a positive successoriented
problem resolution approach

LeadershipTake a leadership role in improving the health status of our
communities

History

History
When Oaklawn Hospital opened the world was a much different place Health care was far removed from todays advancements and technology When opened in 1925 Oaklawn only had 12 beds It was housed in a private residential home not even 5000 square feet with the third floor accommodating operating emergency and maternity rooms a babys bath and a nursery The building was furnished with draperies sheets and pillowcases made by area churches Presumably the hospital was so named because of the many oak trees that still exist on its property

The village of Marshall incorporated in 1887 didnt have its first stoplight until 1926 The hospital opened five years before the Brooks Fountain was dedicated The village population was somewhere between 4200 and 5000

Over a span of more than eight decades Oaklawn has grown and evolved along with Marshall and surrounding communities

The original Oaklawn Hospital building had been a private residence built in 1837 by Sidney Ketchum who with his brother George founded Marshall in 1831 In 1859 Charles P Dibble acquired the property Through his son William J Dibble and later his grandson Charles L Dibble the property was deeded to the Ella E M Brown Charitable Circle Association created as a legacy of Charles E Brown named after his daughter It is still the legal name of Oaklawn Hospital today At the time that it was formed the Charitable Circle was made up of a group of women from local churches and was formed after Brown bequested his home and 37000a value of about 390000 todayfor the purpose of starting a hospital This association sparked the hospital movement in Marshall The old Dibble home dubbed The Mansion House was converted to a hospital and paid for by a fund drive from 192325 that raised 45000 Oaklawn treated its first patient on July 25 1925 During the late 1920s and the 1930s donations to the hospital allowed it to purchase and fund staff and new equipment Gertrude B Smith willed the eastern part of the hospital property in 1932 The hospital had become very overcrowded In 1948 a citizens committee recommended a fund drive to launch a campaign to build a new hospital The fundraising effort led by Samuel H Leggitt and Harold C Brooks raised more than 350000 and the new 47bed hospital opened in September 1953 The building was expanded in 1962 to 69 beds

The 1970s
In 1971 Oaklawn Hospital was on the verge of closing It was on its last provisional license and the Michigan Department of Public Health gave the hospital until August of 1972 to develop a master plan to overcome some facility deficiencies It was determined that 15 million was required to overcome those deficiencies Oaklawn looked to the community to raise 500000 to help fund the project Chaired by Ed Belcher and the late Chet Hemmingson the Decision Now Campaign raised nearly 700000 The hospital was able to proceed with its plans to renovate and expand and because of that it was granted a new license from the state The 10000squarefoot project was completed in 1975 adding a lobby gift shop another operating room medical records offices administrative offices a pharmacy and increasing beds to 77 Additionally the original 12000squarefoot Wright Medical Building opened

The 1980s
In 1980 the Intensive Care Unit opened and physicians began staffing the Emergency Department on weekends In 1988 the 30000squarefoot Wright Medical Building opened

The 1990s
In 1991 a 5 million 35000square foot hospital addition opened improving the Emergency Department Outpatient Surgery Physical Therapy Laboratory Radiology MedicalSurgical facilities and Medical Records It also added space for a permanent advanced CT scanner at the hospital Also in 1991 the 17bed inpatient psychiatric center opened increasing the number of licensed beds to 94 which is where it stands currently In 1994 a 1 million Birth Center renovation created six LaborDeliveryRecoveryPostpartum LDRP rooms among the first hospitals in the area to allow the mom to stay in one room from labor until going home In 1995 Oaklawn became one of the first hospitals in the area to use wireless laptop computers at each bedside a major advancement in clinician communication

It was in the 1990s that the volume of outpatient services began to skyrocket More and more procedures including surgeries could be done without an inpatient stay During the past decade Oaklawns outpatient volume in Radiology Laboratory Cardiopulmonary and Outpatient Surgery has increased each year

2000Present
In 2005 the hospital continued its commitment to outstanding facilities with the expansion of the Cronin Imaging Center the Franke Family Laboratory Registration and the Emergency Department Pointofservice registration is now available in the Laboratory and Radiology far more convenient for the patient

As Marshalls largest employer with a team of more than 700 people Oaklawn has proven to be a solid thriving cornerstone of Marshall and surrounding communities

In April 2006 Oaklawn began a 27 million expansion project that will add 38 private rooms on new third and fourth floors About 11000squarefeet of the second floor will also be renovated and when complete in late 2007 all of the hospitals 77 acute care rooms will be private The first phase of the project 19 private rooms on the new fourth floor opened in May 2007 Oaklawn is expanding to make all acute care rooms private to enhance patient privacy reduce the risk of infection decrease patient stress speed healing shorten hospital stays and improve family amenities

To learn more about Oaklawns private rooms visit the private room page and take a virtual tour