Mission Regional Medical Center Celebrates 70th Anniversary of Serving RGV Community

Award-winning hospital has provided life-saving care in Mission area for seven decades

Mission, Texas / July 2024– Mission Regional Medical Center, a member of the Prime Healthcare Foundation, is celebrating its 70^th anniversary as an award-winning community hospital providing life-saving care for residents of the Rio Grande Valley.

Over the past seven decades, Mission Regional has increased access to healthcare in the western Hidalgo County area and saved thousands of lives.  The non-profithospital provides a variety of medical services, including emergency services, critical care, cardiopulmonary services, newborn ICU, wound care, women’s services, orthopedic care, surgery, gastroenterology, rehab, lab, and state-of-the-art imaging.

Mission Regional celebrated the momentous occasion of its 70th anniversary on July 25 at the Mission Event Center.  Tributes from Governor Greg Abbott, Congressman Henry Cuellar and other national, state and local leaders helped express recognition for the hospital’s mission of healing and saving lives — and appreciation for Mission Regional’s significant impact on the community.

Kane Dawson, CEO of Mission Regional Medical Center, expressed his deepest gratitude to the hospital’s healthcare heroes — physicians, nurses, healthcare workers, support staff, and volunteers — for their steadfast dedication to providing compassionate, high-quality care to the patients of the Rio Grande Valley, while elevating healthcare within RGV communities.

“Together, we eagerly anticipate many more years of delivering safe, consistent quality care and fostering a community-centered approach to healthcare,” Mr. Dawson added.

In 2017, Mission Regional became part of the Prime Healthcare Foundation, a charitable health foundation that includes 15 not-for-profit hospitals.  The Prime HealthCare Foundation is associated with Prime Healthcare, one of the largest hospital systems in the nation with 45 acute-care hospitals in 14 states – including three hospitals in the Rio Grande Valley: Mission Regional Medical Center, Knapp Medical Center in Weslaco, and Harlingen Medical Center.

Prime Healthcare has invested millions of dollars in improvements into Mission Regional Medical Center and brought new community services as well as new physicians to care for patients in the Mission area, including:

• A state-of-the art “da Vinci Xi” surgical robot to assist surgeons with minimally-invasive surgeries for cardiac, urology, gynecology, thoracic, and general surgery patients.
• An upgraded emergency room to better serve seniors, and to provide a convenient new appointment system, “GetCareNow™”, for patients with minor illnesses.
• Increased access to primary and specialty care in the Upper Valley through four outpatient clinics to serve the community: Monarch Obstetrics & Family Medicine; Maternal Health Clinic of Mission; Mission Heart & Vascular (cardiology clinic); and Restore Joints & Spine (orthopedic clinic).
• Plans to open a new free-standing emergency department in Palmview … this exciting project will save lives and expand access to healthcare in the rapidly-growing area west of Mission.

In 2020 and 2021, Mission Regional Medical Center was named one of the “Fortune/IBM Watson Health® 100 Top Hospitals” in the nation.  And from 2020 to 2024, Mission Regional received an “A” grade for patient safety, for four years in a row (from the Leapfrog Group, which evaluates hospitals across the nation).

Mission Regional was also recognized for outstanding social responsibility, receiving an “A” grade on the 2023-24 Lown Institute Hospitals Index.

In addition, in 2024, Mission Regional was recognized as one of 100 great community hospitals in the country by a national publication, Beckers Hospital Review.

Cesar Guerra, RN, Chief Nursing Officer for Mission Regional Medical Center, said Mission Regional’s many awards are a testament to the work of employees and physicians — who are dedicated to providing the highest-quality healthcare to residents of the Valley — every patient, every time.

“These awards that we have achieved as a Prime Healthcare hospital indicate the level of commitment our employees have in ensuring our patients receive the best healthcare experience possible,” Mr. Guerra added.

Kathleen Avila, Regional Business Development Director for Prime Healthcare, said the legacy of Mission Regional Medical Center is enriched by the stories of hundreds of “healthcare heroes” who have saved the lives of thousands of patients – including during the COVID pandemic.

“These heroes at Mission Regional have displayed amazing courage, compassion, and unselfishness on a daily basis,” Ms. Avila added.  “They are champions who have cared for their community during its times of greatest need.”

The hospital traces its roots back to the early 1950s, when the city fathers of Mission worked diligently to address the need for a hospital to care for the sick and injured of the community.  Mission Municipal Hospital opened its doors with 35 beds in July, 1954 at 1205 Bryce Street.

Many important milestones have been reached during the past 70 years, including:

• In 1981, Mission Hospital, Inc., an independent, non-profit organization, acquired ownership of the hospital.
• In 1987, a brand-new hospital building opened in the current location at 900 S. Bryan Road, with 110 beds to serve the community.
• In 1991, a two-story medical office building, Mission Doctors Plaza East, was added to the hospital.
• In 1997, the hospital added 28 beds for maternity patients and inpatient rehabilitation patients, a new emergency department, an ambulatory surgery center, and a second medical office building — the three-story Mission Doctors Plaza West.
• In 2004, the hospital built a five-story building with 132 beds for inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services, an intensive care unit, a step-down telemetry unit, a medical/surgical floor, obstetrics, and a neonatal intensive care unit.
• In 2005, the name of the hospital was changed to Mission Regional Medical Center, reflecting the fact that the hospital was serving not only Mission, but many surrounding communities.
• In 2008, the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit expanded to 20 beds, bringing the licensed capacity of the hospital to 297 beds.
• In 2011, Mission Regional Medical Center opened a new Joint Replacement Institute and significantly upgraded cardiac and electrophysiology capabilities with the addition of a new state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization lab.
• By 2013, the Mission Regional medical staff included 300 physicians and the hospital had a workforce of more than 900 employees.
• In 2013, Mission Regional received a Gold Seal of Approval for Hip and Knee Replacement Surgery from the Joint Commission, the accrediting organization for hospitals. In addition, various hospital services, including cardio-pulmonary, maternity, and orthopedics, were awarded a 5-star rating and ranked among the top 10 percent in the nation by Health Grades, a national healthcare rating organization.

For more information on award-winning, life-saving healthcare care in the Rio Grande Valley, please visit www.missionrmc.org.

About Mission Regional Medical Center

Mission Regional Medical Center is a leading healthcare provider in the Mission area, committed to delivering comprehensive medical services and compassionate care to the community. With a team of highly skilled healthcare professionals and state-of-the-art facilities, the hospital is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of patients.