Central DuPage Hospital celebrates 50 years of health care

WINFIELD – Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and will be acknowledging those five decades with more than cake and balloons. The hospital will honor 50 individuals who have contributed to the health care of patients.

As volunteers at CDH for more than 20 years, Wheaton residents Les and Mary Wiberg are the first Featured Heroes to be recognized. A new honoree will be acknowledged each week for the next year.

In addition to volunteering, the Wibergs have contributed $200,000 to Cadence Health Foundation that will be used for the Ronald McDonald House being built across the street from Central DuPage Hospital.

The new facility is another milestone for the hospital, which has come a long way from the 113-bed facility it was in 1964 when it first opened its doors. However, the one constant has always been a dedicated staff of doctors and volunteers, said Dr. Kevin Most, CDH’s vice president of medical affairs.

“We have unbelievable docs, but the volunteers here and the foundation allows us to pursue things that other hospitals can’t,” Most said.

CDH has 347 beds and about 1,200 physicians, he said. And while the basic foundation of physician caring for patient is the same, the technology certainly isn’t.

Twenty-five years ago when a stroke patient came in at 2 a.m., the person was admitted and monitored until the stroke progressed, Most said. Hospital staff then taught the patient how to eat and walk again.

“Now if you come in with a stroke, a team evaluates you, and we have 20 neurologists on staff. We now go in through your leg, up to your brain and remove that clot so blood flow continues,” he said. “To do it quicker and safer has led to unbelievable outcomes in stroke care.”

Most said another advancement the hospital has experienced is increased specialization in medical care.

“We have joint surgeons that only do hips, and some that only do knees, so you will see shorter lengths of stays and better outcomes, which allows the aging population to stay mobile,” Most said.

While technology is certainly a large part of the health care system, so is a focus on people.

The Ronald McDonald House near Central DuPage Hospital is the first house of its kind to be in Chicago’s western suburbs. Scheduled to open in February 2015, the Ronald McDonald House will provide a place for families of children being treated at CDH, Delnor Hospital in Geneva and the CDH Cancer Center in Warrenville.

“The genesis of having Ronald McDonald House here is very much related to evolution of the hospital,” said Brian Lemon, current hospital president. “We have entered into a relationship with Lurie Children’s Hospital, and we can deepen and expand what we are able to do by taking care of children here. That has been part of our strategy and commitment as a health system.”

Funded entirely by philanthropy, the project will be supported through fundraising efforts managed by Cadence Health Foundation to raise $5 million for construction costs and another $1 million for operations.

Cadence Health also recently merged with Northwestern Memorial HealthCare to operate under the Northwestern Medicine brand name.

For some, mergers can raise concerns about community hospitals losing their local feel and becoming commoditized, Lemon said.

“I think that the important thing to understand is that we really believe that a community hospital is of, by and for the communities we serve,” he said. “The doctors and hundreds of volunteers live in the communities we serve. That is part of our value system. There will be some really good things because of (the merger), and at the end of the day, that is our legacy and that matters a lot to us.”