About Us

Historic Look At Healthcare in Clinton County:
CMH Providing Quality Care for Nearly 60 Years, The Way It Should Be

CMH Regional Health System makes a difference in peoples’ lives every day because its focus is on more than healthcare—it’s on patient care. Though CMH has grown since it opened in 1951, there remains to this day, a sense of community.

Currently CMH Regional Health System, anchored by Clinton Memorial Hospital, is a 150-bed medical/surgical acute care hospital. The hospital currently operates 95 staffed beds, including intensive care, obstetrics, and inpatient rehabilitation units.

CMH employs more than 900 people, has more than 100 volunteers and a medical staff of more than 215 with expertise in more than 30 different specialties. In an age when people across the country are working to fix healthcare, to make it accessible and workable, CMH is a shining example of the way it should be.

The Change

Healthcare in Clinton County has taken on a new look, with CMH Regional Health System moving away from being a county owned entity. In late 2009 the CMH Board of Trustees made the recommendation to sell the 59-year-old county-owned healthcare system to a for profit healthcare organization.

The CMH Board of Trustee recommendation was based on more than a year of detailed research and analysis on its own as well as by the CMH medical staff, management and non-management employees and community leaders. In early 2010, the CMH board’s recommendation to proceed with the county competitive bidding process was acted on by the Clinton County Commissioners as the ultimate decision-making authority.

Moving from a public, non-profit entity to a for-profit, prompts a look back at the history and beginning of Clinton Memorial Hospital which was founded through a community effort.

The Need

In 1945, a group of Clinton County citizens formed a committee to promote the construction of a hospital. Their efforts were successful and in 1945 a construction bond issue in the amount of $600,000 was approved by an 82 percent majority of the voters.

As the planning progressed, it became apparent that additional funds were needed and $290,000 was obtained from the Federal Government. Then Ohio Gov. Frank Lausche appointed a board of trustees to build and equip a hospital for Clinton County. Ground breaking took place on October 3, 1949.

The 64-adult-bed hospital was completed in 1951 and with dedication ceremonies on September 21, 1951. Clinton Memorial Hospital became a reality. The first patient was not admitted however, until October 3 of that year and the first baby, Vicki Priest, was born on October 4.

At the dedication ceremony, Dr. Malcolm T. MacEachern, author of “Hospital Organization and Management,” was the keynote speaker. He said, “It is indeed a great pleasure to be present and to congratulate you people of Clinton County for having brought to your very door this ‘Great Cathedral of Healing’ which will be of great benefit to you, your doctors, your nurses and many, many others.”

The first hospital budget was approximately $300,000 and the late Dr. H.R. Bath was elected the hospital’s first chief of staff.

The Future

In 1945, when the citizens of Clinton County recognized the need for a hospital they couldn’t have foreseen the changes, transformations and challenges healthcare would encounter through the years.

The face of healthcare has changed, making it a challenging environment for small, community-based hospitals to thrive or even survive. Growing economic pressures, looming reform, and reduced reimbursement rates from all payers have forced small community-based hospitals to reconsider standing alone as in the case of CMH, a county-owned entity.

In 2010 the process will move forward towards a partnership and clinical affiliation with a larger health system bringing the much needed financial support.

Other CMH historical footnotes from 2009:

Dr. Michael Choo was named interim president and chief executive officer for CMH Regional Health System, replacing Andy Riddell who retired after more than six years at CMH and 39 years in healthcare.
One new CMH Board of Trustee members was appointed. Geoffrey Phillips, of Wilmington, replaced Ed Kuehn who served 18 years on the board.
CMH celebrated its 10 year anniversary and partnership with Project SEARCH, a transition work program for students with disabilities.
Dr. Leanne Budde, medical oncologist, joined the CMH Medical Staff and the Foster J. Boyd, MD, Regional Cancer Center.
The CMH Medical Staff welcomed four pulmonologists from Dayton Lung and Sleep Medicine, Inc.: Dr. Martin Ambrose, Dr. Aamir Malik, Dr. Mustafa Quadri and Dr. Mohammed Zakkar.
Dr. Rajiv Patel, an obstetric and gynecological physician on the CMH Medical Staff since 1999, was elected chief of staff by the CMH Medical Staff.
The CMH Foundation Auxiliary raised more than $57,000.
The CMH Foundation raised more than $352,000 to assist uninsured and underinsured CMH patients and enhance services at Clinton Memorial Hospital and other health system entities, including the Foster J. Boyd, MD, Regional Cancer Center.
Five members of the CMH Foundation Board of Trustees retired: Andy Riddell, Dr. Foster (Jack) Boyd, Sharon Hiles, Charlyn Kruszka and Phil Snow. Four new Foundation board members joined, including Dr. Gary Blumberg, Jason Walt, Andrew McCoy, all from Wilmington, and Donald Gephart, of Blanchester.
The Foster J. Boyd, MD Regional Cancer Center held its second annual Brake for Breakfast in October and third annual Survivors Day in June.
CMH Regional Health System’s Third Annual Nursing Excellence Awards banquet was held, honoring 25 CMH registered nurses and one licensed practical nurse, representing 13 departments.
The 128 volunteers at CMH logged more than 25,000 hours.