LBJ Celebrates 10 Years of Service

Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital celebrated its 10-year anniversary June 2, 1999, amid the fanfare of well wishes from local, state and national politicians. Harris County and City of Houston resolutions proclaimed that date, coincidentally the exact date the hospital opened 10 years earlier, Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital Day.

U.S. Rep. Gene Green and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee also made the day special by presenting Congressional certificates honoring the occasion before a gathering of nearly 150 people at an early ceremony to start a full day of festivities. Also present were Harris County Commissioner El Franco Lee, State Sen. Jon Lindsay, State Representatives Garnet Coleman and Harold Dutton, and Dean Maximilian Buja of The University of Texas-Houston Medical School. Television personality Marvin Zindler of KTRK-TV and Lois J. Moore, recently retired president and CEO of the Hospital District, were featured speakers at the event.

"Critics of LBJ Hospital said it couldn't be done here. `It will flood,' they said. `It's in an unsafe area,' they said," Zindler recalled. "But I did editorial after editorial, and it was done. And look at how marvelous it has become."

LBJ Hospital first opened its doors to the public in 1989 following the Hospital District's decision to close down Jefferson Davis Hospital. Built in 1938, Jeff Davis Hospital had outgrown the demands on its facility.

In the mid- 1980s, a decision to close down Jeff Davis and construct a new hospital was made. Several years later, the new North-Northeast Hospital, as it was originally called, was now a reality. It was eventually named after the late Texas legend and former U.S. president.

But getting a new hospital built was half the battle. Officials had to also contend with the actual move of staff, patients and equipment from one facility to the other. A move that went surprisingly well.

"I had just become the administrator of Jeff Davis (Hospital) and knew of the pending move to the new hospital," remembers Dr. Margo Hilliard, administrator at LBJ Hospital. "The next thing I know, I'm planning a move. But what really amazed me was the spirit of cooperation everyone had during this anxious and exciting time."

LBJ Hospital is located in northeast Houston and has become an important part of the health care provided to the community. Originally designed to replace the obstetrics and maternity services of Jeff Davis Hospital, LBJ Hospital has become so much more.

In 1990, it became a true general hospital offering a full range of services including emergency and specialty care. That same year, the hospital forged a partnership with The University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center. As a result, many practicing physicians first got their start at LBJ Hospital.

Since its opening, LBJ Hospital has had nearly 1.5 million patient visits, including 811,000 emergency pediatric and adult visits. In its brief history, it has also delivered nearly 94,000 babies to county residents.

Because of its history and impact on the community, LBJ Hospital staff have plenty to celebrate. To mark the occasion, the staff produced a 92-page commemorative book honoring the anniversary. In addition, staff contributed mementos and essays about the various departments in the hospital to place in a commemorative time capsule. Some of the mementos included x-rays chronicling the advances in technology over the past decade. A historic photo display chronicling the closing down of Jeff Davis and the opening of LBJ adorned the main lobby of the hospital.

"Seeing the old photos and newspaper clippings brings back a lot of good memories," said Carol Moore, a pediatric nurse at LBJ Hospital. "It's been a lot of work to get to this point, but it sure has been worth it."

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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