The staff and leaders of Regional Medical Center (RMC) in Manchester and the people of Delaware County recently celebrated the hospital’s 60^th anniversary.  In August of 1950, the hospital opened its doors as Delaware County Memorial Hospital. 

At a reception commemorating the anniversary, Beverly Preussner, RN, MSN, secretary of the RMC Governing Board of Trustees and a former RMC employee, spoke of her memories as a nurse in years past. Preussner recalled when the ambulance was a vehicle from one of the funeral homes that arrived unannounced until the emergency room “doorbell” rang. She remembered the days when all nurses wore caps and skirts; when babies were carried from the nursery through the halls and past lobbies to their mother’s room in another wing of the facility. She noted the four, five, and six-day hospital stays that are now one or two days – at most.  

“Throughout the 60-year history, our leadership and employees have been dedicated to providing quality health care to our patients and for our communities,” said Preussner.  ”On behalf of the Governing Board of Trustees, I want to thank all of you for making Regional Medical Center the fine health care facility that it is today.” 

Today, RMC bears little resemblance to its humble beginnings. Medical technology and consumer demand have brought unimaginable challenges and changes to health care since that time.  Numerous dedicated hospital trustees, medical staff members and caring, compassionate, skilled employees have contributed to the success and brought about excellence in health care, close to home. 

One of the hospital’s strengths has been its consistency of leadership under CEO Lon Butikofer, RN, PhD, who has been with the hospital since 1986 and is only the third CEO in RMC’s 60 years.  During his tenure, Dr. Butikofer has seen the 68-bed hospital and 37-bed nursing home facility evolve into the 25-bed Critical Access Hospital known today as Regional Medical Center. 

 “We recognize hard-earned patient trust, dedicated staff, state-of-the-art technology and facilities as essential parts of our past success and vital to our tomorrows,” said Dr. Burikofer. “We remain committed to providing excellence in health care, close to home for the next 60 years and beyond. The stage has been set for generation after generation to fulfill our mission: Dedicated to improving the health of our communities through professional and personalized care.”