Hospital Maintaining Strong Presence in Welch

It was funded in the year 1896 by an act of the state Legislature.

However, it would be four years later before the first patient would be treated at the Old Miner's No. 1 Hospital in Welch. The facility, which shares a rich history with the coalfields of McDowell County , has since endured for more than a century. It was later known as Welch Emergency Hospital , and today is called Welch Community Hospital .

“We have a long and fruitful history,” hospital Administrator Walt Garrett, said. “In 2000, we changed the name to Welch Community Hospital because we felt it better reflected who we are.”

Today, Welch Community Hospital is still McDowell County 's second largest employer, with just less than 300 employees working at the state-owned and operated facility. The county's largest employer is still the McDowell County Board of Education. “The actual mission of the facility is why we changed the name,” Garrett said. “It reflects what we are and what we do. We are a community hospital.”

At one time, McDowell County was home to thee different hospitals, including the old Stevens Clinic Hospital . Today, Stevens Clinic has been transformed into the Stevens Correctional Center , and Welch Community is the only remaining hospital in the county.

“We have an emergency room that is 24-7 staffed by a physician,” Garrett said. “The hospital itself is licensed for 65 beds on the acute care side, and 59 beds on the long term care side, which is a nursing home. On the acute care side, we have an ICU, labor and delivery, and a medical surgery unit.”

Garrett said the hospital also operates a rural health clinic, which includes internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery and multiple other medical needs. Medical aerial support also is available for the hospital.

The caring arm of Welch Community extends throughout McDowell County and into surrounding areas, such as Wyoming County .

“If you draw a circle around it, it goes for an hour,” Garrett said of the hospital's service area. “There are no other hospitals within an hour drive us.”

Faced with a number of alarming medical concerns in McDowell, Garrett said, officials at the hospital also are working with a number of other care groups in the region. Two particular concerns include a high rate of diabetes in the county as well as a high rate of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which can often be associated with smoking, Garrett said.

Today, hospital officials are enjoying recent successes in McDowell County , which are helping to improve the overall quality of life for county residents. Those recent developments include not only a state prison, but also a new theatre and a new shopping center. However, Garrett admits that Wal-Mart could soon overtake Welch Community Hospital in terms of being the county's No. 2 employer.

“We are excited about what's going on at the hospital and within the community with the growth we are seeing,” Garrett said. “It's exciting with everything from the jail, the promise of the (federal) prison, and the opening of Wal-Mart. As the county grows, the hospital will strengthen. We see our tolerance as a positive one for the community as well.”

After more than 110 years, the hospital still has the unique distinction of being a state-operated facility.

“Welch is owned and operated by the state of West Virginia ,” Garrett said. “It's pretty rare for an acute facility to be owned and operated by the state. To the best of my knowledge, it's always been a state run facility.”

--Charles Owens (Bluefield Telegraph)