Local, Not-for-Profit Healthcare. 100 Years in the Making.
It’s 1908 in Albuquerque. Step off of a train at a gleaming railroad hotel called the Alvarado and head East a couple of miles up Central Avenue to a patch of dirt where an unassuming five-bedroom cottage is being built. Through the generosity of a handful of community members along with the passion and inspiration of Rev. Hugh Cooper, this small building will be a new home to New Mexicans seeking comfort from the scourge of tuberculosis.
This cottage, named the Southwestern Presbyterian Sanatorium, would fill a vital need in New Mexico. The “San” treated 30 patients in its first year and continued to grow as the community grew. The rudimentary early treatment of tuberculosis would evolve to sophisticated medical care. Decades later, the San made way for Presbyterian Hospital, with more than 450 beds, caring for some of the most fragile patients in New Mexico.
Along the way, the hospital became Presbyterian Healthcare Services – eight hospitals across New Mexico, the state’s largest health plan, and a growing multi-specialty medical group. Of course, this growth was not preordained. Presbyterian is the result of the difficult work of – literally – thousands of women and men since our early days. Physicians, dedicated nurses, caregivers and more built a legacy of commitment and caring that allows us to continue as New Mexico’s largest provider of care, serving more than 700,000 patients and members in the state we call home.
Of course, even as Presbyterian saw tremendous growth, some things stayed exactly the same. Presbyterian remains local and not-for-profit. Most importantly, we exist today because, just like Reverend Cooper, we see a vital purpose for our work in New Mexico: To improve the health of individuals, families and communities.
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