** About Us **
Missouri Baptist Medical Center is a 489-bed acute care hospital located at Interstate-270 and Highway 40/I-64. We’re part of BJC HealthCare, one of the most respected systems in the country. Here, you’ll have access to leading specialists and the most advanced medical technology. Truly the future of health care, right here in West County St. Louis.
Known for our commitment to extraordinary and compassionate care, we are a leader in open heart surgery, operate a nationally recognized cancer-care program, and offer comprehensive orthopedic, gastrointestinal and women’s health services. From the simplest medical need to the most serious, we’re here to care for you.
History Of Missouri Baptist Medical Ctr
** Our History **
What began with one patient, one doctor and one room in 1884 has grown into a thriving medical center with 489 beds, more than 1,400 staff physicians and 2,700 employees today. While our hospital has continued to grow through the years, one thing has never changed: our promise to put the needs of our patients first. Always.
1884 -- William H. Mayfield, MD, opens his home to his first patient.
1886 -- Missouri Baptist Sanitarium opens with the support of the Third Baptist Church of St. Louis.
1892 -- Missouri Baptist provides horse and carriage ambulance service.
1892 -- An addition to the Hospital is completed.
1894 -- The first staff is named; includes many noted St. Louis physicians and surgeons.
1895 -- Missouri Baptist Nursing Training School opens.
1897 -- The first class graduates from Missouri Baptist Nursing Training School; there are three.
1903 -- Missouri Baptist purchases its first X-ray machine.
1905 -- Missouri Baptist builds its own electric power station.
1908 -- Missouri Baptist builds a bacteriology and chemical laboratory, one of the first in the nation.
1909 -- Physicians are added to the medical staff; rooms for patients are opened.
1915 -- A new medical building opens; additional services offered; Missouri Baptist purchases a motorized ambulance.
1918 -- During World War I, seven Missouri Baptist physicians and forty nurses volunteer with the Red Cross serving at stateside and overseas military bases; Missouri Baptist treats patients infected with the Spanish flu.
1919 -- Missouri Baptist hires its first dietitian.
1920 -- Missouri Baptist physicians endorse the “St. Louis Plan” to cut down on automobile accidents; the program receives national attention.
1921 -- Missouri Baptist opens a clinic for treating minor illnesses and injuries.
1922 -- Missouri Baptist receives class A rating.
1923 -- Apediatric area is opened in response to the findings of the Central States Pediatric Society; Missouri Baptist is fully accredited by the Missouri State Hospital Association and the American Protestant Hospital Association.
1924 -- Missouri Baptist purchases a cardiograft; the first occupational therapist is added to the staff.
1925 -- Missouri Baptist hires their first social worker to keep in touch with patients leaving the Hospital.
1926 -- Physical therapy is initiated Missouri Baptist using light, heat, water and electricity, massage and traction to treat disease.
1929 -- The Hospital’s name is changed to Missouri Baptist Hospital; the bone and joint center opens 1931 -- Two sections of the Hospital close due to low patient numbers and the Great Depression; Baptist churches give food and money to support the hospital during Hospital Day
1937 -- Missouri Baptist purchases a 200,000-volt X-ray machine to treat cancer patients.
1938 -- Missouri Baptist Nursing students score first, second, and third on the state exam; the Hospital receives a fever cabinet, vasculator, infant respirator, and nose-and-throat operating chair.
1941 -- Fifteen physicians and fifteen nurses enlist after the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor.
1944 -- The entire graduating class from Missouri Baptist Nursing School enlists; the Hospital uses nurses’ aids and volunteers.
1947 -- The pathology lab is updated to include a blood bank.
1949 -- Missouri Baptist is approved by the American College of Surgeons.
1952 -- The 40-hour workweek is instituted at the Hospital.
1954 -- Another building addition is completed that includes a psychiatric unit and postoperative recovery rooms; an outpatient clinic on Washington Avenue also is opened.
1955 -- Missouri Baptist pharmacy achieves a perfect score from the Missouri Board of Pharmacy.
1958 -- Missouri Baptist receives an award from Hug A. Logan of the United Fund
1959 -- A 28-bed unit for the ambulatory chronically ill opens; Missouri Baptist celebrates its 75th anniversary, featuring plans for a new Hospital.
1965 -- Medical facilities relocate to current location.
1972 -- East Wing expansion increases capacity and adds new areas for emergency care, outpatient treatment, surgery and radiology.
1979 -- West Wing expansion includes a new oncology unit, surgical intensive care unit, and respiratory therapy and pulmonary departments.
1983 -- Cardiologists perform the first heart catheterizations at Missouri Baptist
1984 -- A cardiac surgery team is developed; the first open-heart surgery is performed December 3
1989 -- Hospital changes name to Missouri Baptist Medical Center
1993 -- Renovations add 15-room surgery center, medical and surgical intensive-care units and a dedicated Heart Center
1994 -- Missouri Baptist Medical Center joins BJC HealthCare, St. Louis’ largest health care system
2000 -- Renovations include the Cardiac and Vascular Center; Missouri Baptist School of Nursing graduates its final class after 105 years of operation
2001 -- Missouri Baptist Medical Center joins the world’s largest prostate cancer prevention study
2002 -- Building D opens with new Outpatient Cardiac Cath Lab, Digestive Disease Center, Breast Healthcare Center, Center for Women’s Wellness and Fetal Health, and Labor and Delivery Unit
2007 -- Missouri Baptist purchases robotic surgical unit, the da Vinci System, for its prostate cancer program; East Pavilion opens on the southeast corner of the campus with new Emergency Department, Pediatric Emergency Department, Pediatric Care Center, Cancer Center and cardiovascular care area; introduces physician triage process to the new Emergency Department.
