History
Quick Facts
Saint Anthony Hospital was started by the Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis at the request of Rockford community leaders
- Saint Anthony Hospital was originally located at East State and Summit Streets in Rockford and was later relocated to the current site of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center
- Innovative firsts for the Rockford area performed by the physicians affiliated with OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center include open-heart and beating heart bypass surgeries; innovative valve-replacement cardiac surgery; implantable cardiac defibrillators; total hip replacement surgeries; brachytherapy radiation therapy for prostate and lung cancer; implantable pain-relief devices and the use of artificial skin for burn patients
- Other medical firsts at OSF Saint Anthony include artificial spine disc replacement; MicroMaze cardiac surgery; transmyocardial laser revascularization (TMR); intraoperative cerebral angiograms; MammoSite breast cancer treatment; balloon kyphoplasty to treat spinal fractures; 3-dimensional CT scans that provide fast diagnosis of cardiovascular and neurological diseases; and new technology that improves total knee replacement surgery
- OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center is a member of OSF HealthCare, an affiliate corporation of The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis.
Timeline
1890
1899 – Saint Anthony Hospital is founded by the Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis at the corner of East State and Summit Streets.
1910
1915 – The Sisters open the Saint Anthony School of Nursing to help meet the medical needs of the community.
1930
1933 – Dr. Theodor Lang founded the May Day Clinic, a day of continuing education and fellowship held on the lawn of the hospital.
1940
1941 – In response to the need for more nurses, a new nurses’ school is built.
1950
1959 – A team of Saint Anthony Hospital physicians perform Rockford’s fist open-heart surgery. While the surgery was performed on a pig, it allowed the team to perfect their skills.
1960
1963 – Having outgrown the facility at East State and Summit, the Sisters move to a new hospital at the current site of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center.
1964 – Saint Anthony Hospital physicians perform Rockford’s first open-heart surgery on a patient.
1970
1970 – Saint Anthony Hospital physicians perform the first coronary bypass surgery in Rockford.
1976 – Saint Anthony Hospital changes its name to Saint Anthony Medical Center.
1980
1981 – The State of Illinois moves the state trauma helicopter, or the “Lifeline” Helicopter, from Elgin to Saint Anthony Hospital in Rockford. It was the only hospital-based helicopter in Illinois at that time.
1984 – Saint Anthony Medical Center opens a nine-bed Neurological Intensive Care Unit, the only one of its kind in the region at that time.
1986 - First hospital-based MRI
1987 - Trauma Center received Level I rating
1989 – OSF Healthcare System is formed.
1990
1990 – The School of Nursing becomes the College of Nursing
1995 – OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center consolidates oncology testing, treatment and conferences under one roof with the Center for Cancer Care.
1999 – OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center celebrates its 100th anniversary.
2000
2005 – OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center becomes first medical center in Rockford to achieve Magnet designation
2008 – The OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center Stroke Care Program is the first in the region to be awarded the Gold Seal of Approval™ from The Joint Commission. 2010 2012 - First TAVR heart surgery in Rockford performed at OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center
2017 - Saint Anthony College of Nursing moves to new facilities at Rock Valley College.
Opened new $3.2 million biplane suite for surgical stroke intervention, a first in Rockford
2018 - First Watchman cardiovascular surgery done in Rockford.
144,000 square foot expansion (North Tower) opens.
First and only Rockford health system with Comprehensive Stroke Center designation.