“We built this hospital in 1953. It was a smaller hospital designed to address the healthcare needs of what then was a rapidly growing population in Southwest Louisiana in post World War II,” said Bob Davis, chair of the WCCH Board of Commissioners,  in his remarks to officials, community leaders and hospital staff and physicians who gathered in the lobby for the celebration.

The first facility had 50 beds. Two days after it was opened, the first baby was born there.  In 1956, an x-ray lab, emergency room and 25 additional beds were added.

Today, West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital is a 100-bed facility. Highlights from the last three years  are the addition of nuclear medicine scans that have more precise information helping doctors more clearly identify problems, and a new state-of-the-art cath lab. It is the first hospital in the nation to use GE Allia IGS 530 technology, an image-guided system that improves outcomes involving minimally invasive therapies. This year, Calcasieu Family Physicians opened in Carlyss, a fast growing WCCH service district.

Earlier this month, The Women’s Center at West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital (WCCH) received Birth Ready Designation from the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) and the Louisiana Perinatal Quality Collaborative (LaQPC) and was redesignated as a Gift facility by the Louisiana Department of Health and Louisiana Commission on Perinatal Care and the Prevention of Infant Mortality. (The Gift is an evidence-based hospital designation program for Louisiana birthing facilities designed to increase breastfeeding rates and hospital success.)

Sulphur Mayor Mike Danahay issued a proclamation for the milestone event.

“Prior to this hospital opening, residents in West Calcasieu and Cameron parishes were often sent to Lake Charles or even as far as Houston if their ailments could not be treated by local doctors,” he said.

Janie Fruge, WCCH CEO and Sulphur native who has spent most of her career at WCCH, expressed gratitude for the care she and her family received at the hospital through the years and two things especially –  the hospital’s medical staff and providers.

She credited the great working relationship between the administration and health care providers and their leadership with making the hospital great.

In her mind, the pandemic and two hurricanes seem like one single event, one that brought the resilience, loyalty, courage and commitment of the hospital’s healthcare providers and other staff to the forefront.

“Looking forward to the future is just as important as looking at our past,” she said, announcing plans for a water booster station for which the local legislation delegation has helped secure funding, and plans for a professional building.

Davis used the wisdom of Snoopy, the comic strip character, to wrap up his remarks.

“You don’t have to be brilliant, rich, beautiful or perfect to make a difference. You just have to care.”

He said it is that level of care modeled by employees and physicians at WCCH, and the thing that sets it apart.