La Paz Regional Hospital is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The hospital, then known as Parker Community Hospital, officially opened to patients on April 30, 1973. Hospital administrator Floyd Taufest ceremoniously opened the front door of the old front door.

The opening comes after years of controversy over the site, with various proposals for the location. The place of settlement was its current location on Mojave Road, just off State Route 95. The hospital is located on the Colorado River Indian Reservation.

The facility was funded by a $1.5 million bond and a $400,000 line of credit from Lytton Industries. Designed by his RB Williams of Yuma and built by NJ Reibe Enterprises.

Parker Hospital opened two weeks after Lake Havasu Community Hospital. These were the first of his two hospitals to be built outside the western Arizona county seat.

Previously, the nearest hospital was in Bryce, California, about 80 miles away.

Regina Martinez, currently Director of Human Resources, has been with the hospital since August 1979. She remembered her early days in the hospital well. She noted that emergency and surgical procedures were performed in Dr. Anthony Maltese’s office before the hospital opened.

“We had 85 employees then, and now we have 230,” she said. “We are her third largest employer in the area.”

Martinez said there were two beds in what they called a monitoring room, but no intensive care unit. The emergency room was where the operating room is today. They had 7 nurses covering the surgery and the ER. They had a small physical therapy facility.

“I was told this was a pass-through hospital to hospitals in Phoenix and Las Vegas,” she said.

In addition to treating humans, Martise also treated horses, Martinez said.

Dan McCarthy was CEO when Martinez was founded. One of his successors was William Coe, who served as CEO for 16 years.

Martinez said he had no idea what had happened to the hospital. She credited her last three CEOs of the hospital, Clark, Kevin Brown, and Zafer Genk.

“Vicki keeps us on the right track, Kevin keeps us there, and Zafar looks to the future,” she said.

A big change began in 2001 with the appointment of Vickie Clark as CEO. She joined the hospital when it was facing serious financial difficulties. They seemed headed for bankruptcy.

Her first year at Parker was a “wild ride,” Clark said. demanded property tax.

The lowest score was June 2002. At his two meetings with the county board of supervisors in June, Clark said the hospital lost him $1 million in 2001 and again in 2002 he lost $1 million. said. .

Supervisors at the time, Gene Fisher, Cliff Eady, and Jay Howe, said they felt the hospital was vital to the community. Before, I wanted to see the business and restructuring plans.

A business plan was presented and the supervisors approved a provisional three-year tax proposal in a ballot in November 2002. They were approved by county voters.

The current hospital CEO, Zafer Genc, ​​said it now operates as a non-profit that receives no tax subsidies from the county.

“The board at the time was facing some major shortfalls,” Clark said in an email to Pioneer. “Their intention was to provide some reassurance during the restructuring. For several months we had to look at our bank every day to see what bills we could afford to pay, but we made more productive staffing and updated our fees to align with our industry. , we were able to avoid bankruptcy by improving recovery. And the doctors who stood with us, Dr. Marchese, Dr. I would like to thank the many dedicated staff for their hard work, and I cannot but thank the people of La Paz County for passing a short-term tax to help hospitals in transition. We are proud that we were able to expire the tax without renewing.”

During Clark’s tenure as CEO, the hospital underwent significant change and growth. An emergency facility and front entrance were newly established. His MRI unit was installed in February 2009. His new CT and mammography equipment improved the images. In May 2009 he opened the Quartzsite Medical Plaza. A new surgical wing opened in December 2009. A new physical therapy facility opened in July 2011.

Clark said this was done without incurring new debt.

In March 2008, Thompson Healthcare named the hospital one of the top 100 hospitals in the country. Later, his RO “Rock” Kramer and Clark, hospital board members, said this was due to the staff.

“Vicky has turned this place around,” Martinez said. “I am eternally grateful for that.”

Clark retired in April 2015, but returned as interim CEO. Her eventual successor was Kevin Brown, who took over her job in January 2017.

Brown continued many programs and projects initiated by Clark. His one of his projects was a new emergency and primary health care facility that opened on February 4, 2020. Primary health care facilities are now known as River Health Clinics.

Hospitals have been at the forefront of prevention and treatment efforts during the coronavirus pandemic.

Zafer Genc will become CEO in early 2022. He said the hospital now has 25 inpatient beds and his three intensive care beds. They have him five clinics. Parker’s Facility and Parker’s Podiatry Clinic, as well as clinics at Quartzsite, Salome and Bowes.

Genc said the hospital has extensive imaging facilities, including ultrasound bone density scans. It is also a critical access hospital.

In terms of patient visits, Genc says it will have 19,000 clinic visits, 11,000 emergency room visits and 600 inpatient visits in 2022.

Genc once said the hospital was considered a “pass-through” facility to send patients to other hospitals. He said he tries to keep patients as close to home as possible because it’s easier for them and their families.

Genc and Martinez said hospitals are always looking for volunteers through the Auxiliary.

As for the near future, Genc said the hospital wants a physical therapy facility at Quartzsite. They also want the clinic to have a social worker for counseling.

In addition to all others, Genc said hospitals have played a role in economic development. He said having a major medical facility in the area is a big draw for businesses and events.