Lake Charles Memorial Health System began providing quality health care to the Lake Charles area in 1952, when rapid growth following the end of World War II resulted in the need for additional hospital facilities in Calcasieu Parish.
At the same time, the Lake Charles Air Force Base, located east of the city (now known as Chennault International Air Park), was deactivated, leaving the base hospital empty. Members of the Calcasieu Parish Medical Society petitioned the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury for help obtaining the use of the base hospital, a 75-bed facility that had served military personnel during the war. The request was granted, and the Medical Society selected some of its members to administer the facility.
However, while the parish had use of the facility, it did not get ownership. So while the base hospital remained in operation under this plan, area doctors and private citizens began work on a plan to establish a new, permanent hospital in Lake Charles.
The new non-profit, 100-bed Lake Charles Memorial Hospital was constructed in what was then, the new Oak Park subdivision. While the new hospital officially opened its doors on October 23, 1952, it was "unofficially" opened on October 17 for a special delivery. Mrs. Joe T. Miller, whose husband was supervisor of construction for the facility, gave birth to a daughter, the first baby born at the new hospital. Memorial grew rapidly in the decades that followed. By 1972, just 20 years after its opening, the hospital had expanded to include accommodations for 211 patients, a pediatric unit, air transport capabilities and a volunteer auxiliary.
A 10-story patient tower was added in 1980, again increasing available patient beds and greatly expanding the range of services. To date the hospital continues to add specialized services, advances in medical technology, and outreach programs in response to community need and in an effort to offer patients the latest innovations in medical treatment.
In January 2003, as secon campus in southwest Lake Charles, Memorial Hospital for Women, opened as a facility dedicated to women's health, featuring the Family Birth Center, Special Care Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and Women's Specialty Unit. The state-of -the-art facility combines comprehensive inpatient and outpatient services, including obstetrics, gynecology, general surgery, incontinence treatment, breast health, menopause, vein and vascular treatment, and the most advanced integrated diagnostics, including digital mammography, laboratory testing, radiology, and ultrasound.
Today, Memorial continues to be the largest healthcare provider now serving Southwest Louisiana, consisting of a 391-bed acute care complex, which consists of the main campus on Oak Park Boulevard, Memorial Hospital for Women in south Lake Charles, and a long-term care facility at Extended Care of Southwest Louisiana. With over 1,500 employeess and 250 physicians, the hospital continues to be a pillar of the Lake Charles, as the largest healthcare system and one of the largest employers in Lake Charles.