HEBER SPRINGS, Ark. –On Nov. 16, 1996, the Cleburne County Hospital – the original hospital in Heber Springs – officially became Baptist Health Medical Center-Heber Springs and the fifth hospital in the Baptist Health healthcare system.
To celebrate twenty years of quality care and compassionate service to residents in the surrounding area, BHMC-Heber Springs is hosting a community-wide drop-in reception Wednesday, Nov. 16, from 2 to 6 p.m. in the hospital’s cafeteria. Hospital leadership will be on hand and refreshments will be served. Everyone is invited to attend.
When Cleburne County Hospital opened in 1968, it was a 36-bed acute-care facility. After it became part of the Baptist Health family in 1996, it had 49 beds featuring a medical staff of six active members and 28 consulting physicians. The hospital offered and continues to offer a broad range of radiology and laboratory diagnostic services, home health services, a full-service emergency department, and surgery.
Then on June 28, 2007, the hospital moved into its new 64,100-square-foot facility located in the midst of the Ozark foothills with a picturesque backdrop of Sugar Loaf Mountain at 1800 Bypass Road. The state-of-the-art facility included an expanded emergency department, an expanded operating suite, a centralized outpatient clinic, in-house MRI services, a second covered entrance, a larger cafeteria, and updated inpatient rooms.
Ed Lacy, Vice President of BHMC-Heber Springs, said that being a part of the community has been a very gratifying experience.
“It’s so important that our community has access to convenient, quality and life-saving hospital care,” said Lacy. “We serve roughly a six-county area and in many instances, the time it takes to get to a hospital is a real factor in whether a patient recovers or survives.”
“But another reason our hospital is so important to Heber Springs is for the economic development and well-being of the city. Any time you have businesses looking to locate to an area, one of the things they always look for is access to top-notch healthcare,” he added.
Baptist Health is the state’s most comprehensive healthcare system. With more than 175 points of access, including nine hospitals, Baptist Health is committed to delivering “All Our Best” in healthcare to Arkansans. For more information about BHMC-Heber Springs, call Baptist Health HealthLine at 1-888-BAPTIST.