The story
History
Founding and early years
Texas Medical Center was established in 1945, in part by funds endowed to the M.D. Anderson Foundation by businessman Monroe Dunaway Anderson. The fund's first gift was a check of $1,000 to the Junior League Eye Fund for eyeglasses. In 1941, the Texas State Legislature granted funds to the University of Texas for the purpose of starting a cancer research hospital. The M.D. Anderson Foundation matched the state's gift to the university by supplying funds and land on the condition that the hospital be established in Houston and named after its founder.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved the purchase of 118 acres (0.48 km2) from the estate of local entrepreneur George Hermann (namesake of Hermann Park) in 1944 for the construction of a 1,000-bed naval hospital in Houston. The hospital, later renamed the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, opened in 1946 and became a teaching facility for Baylor College of Medicine. In 1946, several projects were approved for inclusion in the Texas Medical Center including:
Memorial Hermann–Texas Medical Center, built in the 1920s
Shriners Hospitals for Children
Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center, Houston Methodist Hospital
The Texas Medical Center Library
M.D. Anderson Hospital for Cancer Research of the University of Texas began construction in 1953. Texas Children's Hospital admitted its first patient in 1954.
During the late 1950s, the Texas Institute for Rehabilitation and Research opened. The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute at Houston added the Gimbel Research Wing. Texas Woman's University Nursing Program began instruction.
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In 1962, the Texas Heart Institute was chartered and became affiliated with Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center (known then as St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital) and Texas Children's Hospital. Ben Taub General Hospital of the Harris Health System (known then as Harris County Hospital District) opened in 1963.
The TMC Library provides access to thousands of current digital books and journals and its John P. McGovern Historical Collections and Research Center houses rare medical books dating back to the 1500s, historical manuscripts such as the McGovern Collection on the History of Medicine, the Menninger Collection of Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis, and the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission which recorded the aftereffects of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Recent developments
In 1993, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center began a $248.6-million expansion project which constructed an inpatient pavilion with 512 beds, two research buildings, an outpatient clinic building, a faculty office building, and a patient-family hotel. From 2005 to present, the George and Cynthia Mitchell Basic Sciences Research Building, the Ambulatory Clinical Building, the Cancer Prevention Center and a new research building on the South Campus opened. The Proton Therapy Center, the largest facility in the United States where proton therapy is used to treat cancer, opened in July 2006.
In 2001, the Texas Medical Center was devastated by Tropical Storm Allison, which flooded basements and the first floors with 18 inches of water. This resulted in retrofitting of storm doors and barriers to prevent future flooding.
The Memorial Hermann Healthcare System constructed the six-floor, 165,000-square-foot (15,300 m2) Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute. Also recently completed around 2006 was the 30-story Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza, which is now the largest medical office building in the Texas Medical Center. At night, it became recognizable by its unique rainbow lantern. The construction was part of the system's citywide "Century Project" initiative.
In 2005, Baylor College of Medicine opened the Baylor Clinic.
The Texas Children's Hospital announced the largest investment and program expansion ever by a single pediatric organization. The $1.5 billion, four-year initiative was targeted for completion in 2010 and focused on research and accessibility. Major projects included the development of the neurological research institute ($215 million), the formation of a maternity center ($575 million), and the expansion of existing research facilities ($120 million). Texas Children's was undertaking the development of one of the largest pediatric hospitals in a suburban setting ($220 million). The remainder of the expenditures were earmarked for new equipment and information systems.
In 2010, the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, including the John Sealy Hospital, became the 49th member of the Texas Medical Center and the first member-institution located outside the City of Houston.
Texas Medical Center–West Campus, serving residents of greater west Houston and adjacent areas, opened in January, 2011. Representing an initial investment of more than half a billion dollars, and almost 1.2 million square feet of healthcare development, the first two facilities to open in the new campus were the Texas Children’s Hospital and The Houston Methodist West Hospital. Texas Children’s West Campus is among the nation’s largest suburban pediatric hospitals.
In 2012, Texas Medical Center added the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Galveston, which treats pediatric trauma burns, as its 50th member institution.
In 2016, Texas Medical Center added San José Clinic, the community's leading charity care clinic, as a member institution. Denise Castillo-Rhodes, executive vice president and chief financial officer of the Texas Medical Center, as well as a volunteer for San José Clinic noted when it became a member of TMC: "San José Clinic serves a very important role in our community. Thus, it is a natural next step for the Clinic to join the Texas Medical Center as its newest member, as it continues to grow and provide extraordinary healthcare and education at affordable prices.".
In 2020, Texas A&M announced plans to build a $550 million complex on the southern side of the TMC including academic, medical office, and housing buildings.
On June 24, 2020, the Texas Medical Center released data showing a 97% capacity in its ICU facilities due to the COVID-19 crisis. The Texas Medical Center has been a forefront of helping COVID-19 victims in Houston during the pandemic.
Parks and recreation
The Weekley Family YMCA is in the area. It opened in 1951 as the Southwest YMCA, in West University Place. The current facility in Braeswood Place, Houston broke ground in 2001.
In 2023, Helix Park opened as part of the Texas Medical Center complex with six parks shaped around a double-helix and a campus collaboration building. The park is a center for connections, events, and outdoor respite in the heart of the life science center.
From Wikipedia’s article on Texas Medical Center, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5