Vital Signs

Then & Now

A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the 1955 Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital annual report:

"Our professional, technical, and service staffs are well trained, competent, and loyal," wrote the president of the Board of Trustees. "The statistical data provided you will bear out the fact that adequate coverage has been provided in practically every field of medical science. This is as it should be, because the first duty of a hospital is of dedication to the sick and ailing who come seeking assistance."

55
M.D.'s practicing at Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital in 1955

888
M.D.'s (and equivalents) practicing at DHMC in 2010

A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the 1980 DMS Bulletin:

"Research extends the boundaries of knowledge and thereby defines the educational program. It is not separate from teaching, but is the means for educating both educators and students. . . . In 1979, the DMS faculty received approximately $4.4 million in research funds . . . from federal and private sources."

$160 million
Amount of research funding received by members of the DMS faculty in FY2010

85th percentile
DMS's ranking among all U.S. medical schools on the basis of National Institutes of Health funding per basic science faculty member

A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the 1970 Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital Annual Review:

"We find ourselves gearing up for a totally new era of service," wrote MHMH's executive director. "A unique partnership with the Hitchcock Clinic and Dartmouth Medical School [is] resulting in what is known as the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. . . . It may be expected that the Hospital will become the base for a number of communityoriented health services."

158,108
Outpatient visits in 1980

1.79 million
Outpatient visits in 2010

515,592
2010 visits in Lebanon

1.27 million
2010 visits at other DH sites

A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from a 1991 history of Mary Hitchcock Hospital:

"Hospital births—which had declined during the depths of the Depression, as women had fewer babies and delivered those they had at home—rose from 177 in 1936 to 316 in 1940." In 1946, a 41% increase in the number of births at MHMH signaled the start of the baby boom.

1,108
Births at DHMC in 2010

1940
Year Hitchcock acquired its first incubator

1974
Year DHMC opened a neonatal intensive care unit

30
Number of beds in DHMC's NICU today