History

The OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group story begins in the 1800's in Bismarck's Germany, in the village of Herford. There, a group of sisters taught school and took care of orphans until violent persecution of the Catholic Church began, and the sisters were exiled from the country.

The little group of 29 Sisters took refuge in the United States, settling in Iowa City, Iowa. In 1876, the pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Peoria requested that the sisters establish a hospital there, and the first St. Francis Hospital was founded by The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, East Peoria, Illinois.

In 1883, a request to provide health care in Delta County came from Rev. Eugene Butterman, OFM, then pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Escanaba. County officials in Escanaba had built the Delta County Hospital to provide for the community's health care needs, but it was difficult to keep it sufficiently staffed with good nursing personnel. The mayor and the county physician approached Father Butterman to obtain sisters for the nursing staff.

In an agreement signed February 12, 1884, the sisters would conduct the hospital and be paid as nurses by the city of Escanaba. The first administrator was Sister Barbara.

A New Hospital

A fire in 1889 destroyed a good portion of the old hospital building. In 1915, at the suggestion of the mayor, the Sisters purchased the Delta County Hospital, renaming it St. Francis Hospital. In 1926, another fire partially destroyed the hospital. The people of Escanaba came to the Sisters' aid immediately to help rebuild a new facility.

The new hospital included two wings, with an addition of needed patient rooms and a convent for the Sisters. Three thousand people gathered for the Dedication Mass in 1927.

The current hospital building was constructed in 1985 and opened in 1986. In 1995, the OSF Medical Office Building was added, and an 11-bed kidney dialysis center was built in 2000 with community donations.

Another addition was made to the hospital in 2005 to house permanent Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) services, made possible through a gift from Mr. and Mrs. John & Melissa Besse. That same year, a public open house was also held for the Hospital's new Cardiac Diagnostic Center.

In 2008, the Hospital broke ground on a new $6.4 million Emergency Department & Walk-In Center, which was completed in late spring 2009.

OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group Today

Today, OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group is Delta County's 2nd largest employer, with more than 700 employees and over 125 physicians on our active and consulting medical staff, and an economic impact of over $105 million in our communities.

The sole community provider for Delta County and surrounding areas, we are part of OSF Healthcare System, headquartered in Peoria, Illinois. A fully-integrated health care delivery system with hospital, physician and home based services, we are the only Catholic hospital in the Upper Peninsula. The Mission of OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group is "... to serve persons with the greatest care and love..."

OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group provides millions of dollars in charity care to area residents each year, along with hundreds of thousands of dollars in free and reduced fee health education programs and screenings.

We see over 180,000 patients annually for various outpatient procedures, hospitalizations and physician visits, with more than 30,000 patients visiting in our emergency department and walk-in clinic each year.

OSF St. Francis Hospital & Medical Group has been the recipient of the Governor's Award of Excellence for the past seven consecutive years. OSF St. Francis received the Delta County Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award in 2003 and Philanthropy Award in 2008 as well as the Community Foundation "Big Hitter" award in 2010.

Throughout their history, the Sisters have worked hard to ensure up-to-date facilities and quality care for all the citizens of Delta County and the surrounding areas. As we remember the past and rejoice in the present, we also look forward to our future and our continued commitment to providing the highest quality health care possible to the patients we serve.