Clarke County Hospital History

Clarke County Hospital continues to take facility, services to a new era

CCH continues its mission to remain a healthcare leader in many aspects, including being on the cutting edge of technology.

The community is important to us at CCH, and we are driven to expand the scope of services to our patients so many of their healthcare needs are located outside your front door.

At CCH, we continue to expand our telemedicine program, adding new services and physicians regularly. Telemedicine is a real-time video link that allows the patient to see and hear the physician and physician being able to see and hear the patient. Telemedicine has been a new buzzword around CCH in recent months as the facility continues to install telemedicine equipment and offer new telemedicine services ushering in a new era at the facility. Telemedicine allows a patient to visit and be examined by a specialty physician in Des Moines without the physician being physically present.

We hear and witness firsthand the vision of where CCH is going, it is also quite fascinating to look back and see the vision of a community and how a dream became a reality, and one that it likely never imagined 60 years later that would allow a patient to see a doctor anywhere in the world right from the Clarke County Hospital.

Since opening our doors in 1953, Clarke County Hospital has been a cornerstone of the community and south central Iowa.

"Clarke County Hospital is a facility that is a model of excellence in healthcare, a place which has treated tens of thousands of area residents for over 60 years, and a provider that continues to search for way to offer cutting-edge services close to home," said Brian Evans, CCH chief executive officer.

We have grown and adapted in response to our patients' needs.

County officials demonstrated a need for the 32 bed hospital, and the services it could provide to the community.

Voters came out in significant support for a bond issue to construct a new hospital. On Dec. 11, 1947, 1,249 Clarke County voters cast ballots in favor of the bond issue. There was opposition to the community leaders' vision, but it was only 203 voters. The measure passed with 80.47 percent approval.

On January 19, 1953, the first patient on January 19 was R. J. Badger of Murray. The 89 year old was one of seven patients admitted on the brisk January day.

CCH welcomed its first child being born at the facility just two days after opening to the public at 5:48 a.m. Tuesday, January 21, 1953. A daughter was born to Osceola residents Mr. and Mrs. Adrian Fuller.

So much has changed in the past 67 years. The vision our community had more than six decades ago continues to expand as Clarke County Hospital pursues to broaden its plethora of services and remind the community what has been added in recent years such as vascular ultrasound testing, stress testing, dexascan testing for bone density, speech therapy, skilled nursing and a comprehensive group of diagnostics.

The community matters to us and we have mattered to the community for over 60 years. This long relationship is one we are excited to continue, build upon and serve you and your descendants in the many years to come.