Bridgeport Hospital is a not-for-profit general medical and surgical hospital in
Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. It is a member of Yale New Haven Health System and affiliated with
Yale School of Medicine
The Yale School of Medicine is the graduate medical school at Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was founded in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College and formally opened in 1813.
The primary te ...
.
During 2018, Bridgeport Hospital received professional recognition for geriatric and palliative care, diabetes treatment, human rights and local economic partnership.
History
In the 1870s, Dr. George Lewis, a physician practicing in the city, persuaded his aunt, Susan Hubbell, to bequeath $13,500 and an acre at the summit of Mill Hill for the construction of a hospital, the first in Fairfield County, and only the third in the state. Before Bridgeport Hospital, "the closest thing to a hospital in the city was a facility in the basement of the future police headquarters, where infection and mortality rates were high among the emergency patients and poor residents who received care there," according to the hospital's web site.
The hospital was founded in 1878 when Bridgeport Mayor
P.T. Barnum
Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...
and other community leaders received approval from the state legislature to incorporate the institution. When a board of directors was named soon afterward, Barnum was elected its first president.
Construction on the present site began in 1883 to designs by local architects
Lambert & Bunnell
Lambert & Bunnell was a long-lived American architectural firm from Bridgeport, Connecticut, in business from 1860 to 1901. It was established by Edward R. Lambert (1834-1904) and Rufus W. Bunnell (1835-1909).
Founders and history
The founder ...
. On November 12, 1884, the new hospital began treating patients.
Description
Bridgeport Hospital has 501 beds on two campuses, plus 42 beds licensed to Yale New Haven Children's Hospital. It has more than 2,900 employees and more than 1,110 physicians representing more than 60 sub-specialties and 230 medical/surgical residents and fellows in programs affiliated with Yale School of Medicine.
The hospital operates a second campus on the site of the former
Milford Hospital in
Milford, Connecticut
Milford is a coastal city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located between New Haven and Bridgeport. The population was 50,558 at the 2020 United States Census. The city includes the village of Devon and the borough of Woodmont. ...
, which was integrated with Bridgeport Hospital by Yale New Haven Health in June 2019.
Bridgeport Hospital is an
American College of Surgeons
The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref>
See also
*American College of Physicians
The American College o ...
-certified
Level II trauma center
A trauma center (or trauma centre) is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major traumatic injuries such as falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. A trauma center may also refer to an emergen ...
. and is equipped with a
helipad
A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft.
While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard s ...
.
In its 2020 fiscal year, the hospital had 21,686 inpatient discharges and 75,634 emergency department visits.
The hospital is accredited by the
Joint Commission
The Joint Commission is a United States-based nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c) organization that accredits more than 22,000 US health care organizations and programs. The international branch accredits medical services from around the world. A majori ...
.
The hospital can support up to six patient at a time in its chamber for
hyperbaric medicine
Hyperbaric medicine is medical treatment in which an ambient pressure greater than sea level atmospheric pressure is a necessary component. The treatment comprises hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), the medical use of oxygen at an ambient pressure ...
, also known as hyperbaric oxygen therapy. and operates the only specialized burn care facility in Connecticut.
The hospital's Norma F. Pfriem Cancer Institute, which includes the Norma F. Pfriem Breast Care Center and other cancer centers of excellence, is approved by the American College of Surgeons as a Teaching Hospital Cancer Program,
The Ahlbin Rehabilitation Centers provide comprehensive musculoskeletal, neurological, and cognitive rehabilitation services, including specialized services for young children. Service lines include Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech-Language Pathology, and Recreational Therapy.
References
External links
Official WebsiteConnecticut Department of Public HealthHospital Performance Comparisonsa report released in February 2006 by the state Department of Health
{{authority control
Hospital buildings completed in 1884
Teaching hospitals in Connecticut
Buildings and structures in Bridgeport, Connecticut
1878 establishments in Connecticut
Trauma centers