Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, NY is a
non-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
, 286-bed hospital providing emergency, medical, surgical, obstetrical/gynecological and acute care services to residents of Rockland and southern Orange Counties in New York; and northern Bergen County, New Jersey. The hospital is home to a cardiovascular program, cancer treatment services, Wound and Hyperbaric Institute and maternal/child services that includes a Children's Diagnostic Center. Good Samaritan Hospital also provides social, psychiatric and substance abuse services and its certified home care agency supports residents of the Hudson Valley and beyond. Good Samaritan Hospital is a member of the
Bon Secours Charity Health System
The Bon Secours Charity Health System, part of the Bon Secours Health System (USA), was established from a partnership between the Sisters of Bon Secours and the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth of Convent Station, New Jersey. The system inclu ...
, which also includes St. Anthony Community Hospital in
Warwick, New York
Warwick is a town in the southwestern part of Orange County, New York, United States. Its population was 32,027 at the 2020 census. The town contains three villages (Florida, Greenwood Lake, and Warwick) and eight hamlets ( Amity, Bellvale, Ed ...
, and Bon Secours Community Hospital in
Port Jervis, New York
Port Jervis is a city located at the confluence of the Neversink and Delaware rivers in western Orange County, New York, United States, north of the Delaware Water Gap. Its population was 8,775 at the 2020 census. The communities of Deerpark, ...
. The Bon Secours Charity Health System has subsequently become part of the
WMCHealth. The hospital currently has a staff of more than 600 doctors and 2000 employees. Its academic affiliate is the
New York Medical College
New York Medical College (NYMC or New York Med) is a private medical school in Valhalla, New York. Founded in 1860, it is a member of the Touro College and University System.
NYMC offers advanced degrees through its three schools: the School o ...
School of Medicine.
History
In 1902, Good Samaritan Hospital opened with seven beds, three doctors, seven nurses and four Sisters of Charity, more than enough to serve Suffern's population of 1,800 and small business district consisting of: four hotels, three churches, one school, a lumberyard, an opera house and an assortment of small stores.
A private citizen, said to be Ida Barry Ryan, donated a building at Orange Avenue and East Park Place and $25,000 to the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth to create a hospital. In its first year, the hospital treated 162 patients and was soon forced to expand. During the next ten years, the hospital added an operating room, a pharmacy and X-ray departments. By 1917, the hospital had 35 beds, nine physicians and three specialists. Maternity services had been available at the hospital from the beginning, but the
Spring Valley branch of the Ladies Auxiliary funded the furnishings and equipment for a nursery in 1926 and a maternity ward in 1927.
By 1929, a population increase created an urgent need to build a larger hospital. A committee raised $93,000 and, in 1932, bought on Lafayette Avenue, the current site of the hospital, for $22,500. The new 72-bed hospital opened on December 14, 1938, and was the first hospital in Rockland County to be fully approved by both the
American Medical Association
The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016.
The AMA's state ...
and the
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 ...
. In 1939, the hospital won an award as the best-equipped Catholic hospital in the United States and Canada.
When the
Tappan Zee Bridge opened in 1955, it brought a large number of new residents to the region and in 1959, Good Samaritan Hospital responded to the need for medical care with the
Cardinal Spellman
Francis Joseph Spellman (May 4, 1889 – December 2, 1967) was an American bishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church. From 1939 until his death in 1967, he served as the sixth Archbishop of New York; he had previously served as an auxiliary ...
Pavilion. Home Care was founded in 1962 and today has grown into one of the largest home care programs in New York.
In 1970, the new Sister Miriam Thomas Pavilion, a five-story, $7 million health facility, was opened, with two 35-bed Medical/surgical floors, a maternal and newborn care center, a laboratory, radiology, a nuclear medicine and cobalt center and a recovery room. The Monsignor Patrick J. Frawley Memorial Psychiatric Unit also opened.
The
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (August 28, 1774 – January 4, 1821) was a Catholic religious sister in the United States and an educator, known as a founder of the country's parochial school system. After her death, she became the first person bo ...
Critical Care Center was completed in 1980, and the Frank and Fannie Weiss Renal Dialysis Center was opened in 1982. An $85 million building and renovation project included the construction of a cardiac catheterization laboratory and expansion of the radiology, laboratory and rehab services departments.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the hospital added: a 28-bed chemical and alcohol dependency outpatient program, a children's diagnostic center, single-room maternity units and a neonatal intermediate care nursery (NICU-level), and brachytherapy in radiation oncology services.
In 1996, Good Samaritan Hospital and its sponsors, the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth, joined the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor, the
Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...
and the Franciscan Health System to form the Tri-State Health System.
The Emergency Department earned a Level II trauma services designation in 1997. In January 2000, Good Samaritan Hospital and the Sisters of Charity entered into a co-sponsorship with the
Sisters of Bon Secours
The Congregation of the Sisters of Bon Secours is an international Roman Catholic women's religious congregation for nursing (''gardes malades''), whose declared mission is to care for those who are sick and dying. It was founded by Josephine Pot ...
, creating Bon Secours Charity Health System.
In the fall, the hospital unveiled the Union State Bank Family Birthing Center
and added a full-time maternity consultant.
Cardiac Services in Rockland County
The hospital was approved to begin performing
angioplasties
Angioplasty, is also known as balloon angioplasty and percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA), is a minimally invasive endovascular procedure used to widen narrowed or obstructed arteries or veins, typically to treat arterial atheroscleros ...
in 2003, but it was clear that the hospital's service area needed more. In 2005, the first major step in remedying this situation was taken when the New York State Hospital Review and Planning Council recommended granting approval of Good Samaritan Hospital's Certificate of Need (CON) application for an adult cardiac surgery program.
Also in 2005, Good Samaritan Hospital became the first hospital in the country to earn Disease Specific Care Certification for the management of acute myocardial infarction. The Stroke Center at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center is also recognized as
Primary Stroke Centerby the
New York State Department of Health
The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) is the department of the New York state government responsible for public health. It is headed by Health Commissioner Mary T. Bassett, who was appointed by Governor Hochul and confirmed by the S ...
. Good Samaritan Hospital was the first hospital in New York State to earn both "The Joint Commission" Primary Stroke Center certification, along with state designation as a Primary Stroke Center.
In 2007, the hard work of the previous two years was realized when the hospital performed its first open heart surgery, which marked
the complete opening of The Active International Cardiovascular Institute at Good Samaritan, the only comprehensive cardiac surgery program in New York State west of the Hudson River between the New Jersey border and
Albany, more than to the north.
Only one month previously, the hospital was once again recognized with the Gold Seal of Approval for both the Management of Acute Myocardial Infarction (heart attack) and Management of Stroke from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).
References
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Hospital buildings completed in 1938
Hospital buildings completed in 1980
Buildings and structures in Rockland County, New York
Hospitals established in 1902
Hospitals in New York (state)
Ramapos
Catholic hospitals in North America
Catholic health care