Tampa General Hospital
Encyclopedia
Tampa General Hospital is a 1,004-bed teaching hospital
in downtown Tampa
, Florida
. It is located on Davis Islands.
Tampa General Hospital has about 6,700 employees, works in partnership with the University of South Florida
, and has one of just four burn center
s in Florida. Tampa General Hospital is a level one trauma center
, with a five-helicopter fleet, serving 23 counties.
TGH has specialty centers for Orthopedics, Trauma, Obesity, Neurology, Parathyroid Surgery, Head and Neck Surgery, Burns, Cardiac Surgery, Transplantation, Vascular Surgery, Women's Health and OB/GYN, Pediatrics, Neonatal Intensive Care, In-vitro Fertilization, and others. Tampa General hospital is home to one of the leading organ transplant centers in the country, having performed more than 6,000 adult solid organ transplants, including the state’s first successful heart transplant in 1985.
TGH has been accredited the "magnet status" by the American Nurses Credentialing Center since 2005.
of the Palma Ceia Country Club golf course. David P. Davis, developer of Davis Islands, was playing with Dr. J. Brown Farrior, James Swann, and Mayor Chancy of Tampa. The city had considered expanding the existing George Keller Memorial Hospital, located at 306 North Boulevard in what had been the grounds of the Tampa Bay Hotel, but had found such expansion unworkable. Instead, it approached Davis about building upon the Davis Islands land that he had deeded to the city. On the golf course, Davis asked Farrior, who was then chairman of the city's Committee for the Construction of Tampa Municipal Hospital, where he wanted the hospital sited, drawing a rough map of the Islands in the sand. Farrior indicated the tip of the island.
Whether this story is true or not, that is where the hospital construction began in March 1926, voters in the city having approved a USD
215,000 bond issue to fund construction in 1924. The hospital building was complete by the next year, the final construction cost having been USD300,000, with patients moving to there from the George Keller Memorial Hospital on 1927-11-15. James Swann became the Chairman of the board of directors
of Tampa Municipal.
The original hospital building, the inscription over whose main entrance archway reads "Tampa Municipal Hospital Memorial to Gordon Keller", was originally surrounded by parkland, and dominated the landscape of Davis Islands. It provided 250 hospital beds for patients. Whilst it still stands today, it has become almost wholly obscured from view by new buildings, and additions to the hospital, that surround it. In 1936, the Gordon Keller School expanded into a new building next to the original.
In 1956, the hospital was renamed to Tampa General Hospital. In 1991, the original building was renamed after Clara Frye, an African American nurse who ran the Clara Frye Hospital for 20 years in the early 1900s, and after whom the Clara Frye Memorial Hospital that existed in West Tampa from 1938 to 1967 had been named. Frye admitted patient of all races, African American or otherwise, to her hospital. The Tampa Municipal Hospital did not admit African American patients until the 1950s.
The impact of Hurricane Elena
caused the hospital's main generator plant to be moved out of its previous location in the basement to a higher location, reducing the risk of it being rendered inoperational by flooding, but the hospital site is still vulnerable to the Davis Islands bridges being washed out during a hurricane.
The hospital itself is now largely proofed against storms, despite the continuing vulnerability of the island it sits upon. Recent building work in the 21st century, on the Bayshore Pavilion, has incorporated many of the hospital design recommendations of Washington Hospital Center's ER One project. All critical functions have been placed at or above the second level of the building, above the storm surge
level, placing emergency room parking on the first level.
Teaching hospital
A teaching hospital is a hospital that provides clinical education and training to future and current doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, in addition to delivering medical care to patients...
in downtown Tampa
Tâmpa
Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. It is located on Davis Islands.
Tampa General Hospital has about 6,700 employees, works in partnership with the University of South Florida
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida, also known as USF, is a member institution of the State University System of Florida, one of the state's three flagship universities for public research, and is located in Tampa, Florida, USA...
, and has one of just four burn center
Burn center
A Burn center or Burns unit is a hospital specializing in the treatment of burns. Burn centers are often used for the treatment and recovery of patients with more severe burns....
s in Florida. Tampa General Hospital is a level one trauma center
Trauma center
A trauma center is a hospital equipped to provide comprehensive emergency medical services to patients suffering traumatic injuries. Trauma centers grew into existence out of the realization that traumatic injury is a disease process unto itself requiring specialized and experienced...
, with a five-helicopter fleet, serving 23 counties.
TGH has specialty centers for Orthopedics, Trauma, Obesity, Neurology, Parathyroid Surgery, Head and Neck Surgery, Burns, Cardiac Surgery, Transplantation, Vascular Surgery, Women's Health and OB/GYN, Pediatrics, Neonatal Intensive Care, In-vitro Fertilization, and others. Tampa General hospital is home to one of the leading organ transplant centers in the country, having performed more than 6,000 adult solid organ transplants, including the state’s first successful heart transplant in 1985.
TGH has been accredited the "magnet status" by the American Nurses Credentialing Center since 2005.
History
Local legend has it that the placement of what was originally named Tampa Municipal Hospital on Davis Islands was decided in a bunkerBunker (golf)
A hazard is an area of a golf course in the sport of golf which provides a difficult obstacle. which may be of three types: water hazards such as lakes and rivers; man-made hazards such as bunkers; and natural hazards such as dense vegetation. Special rules apply to playing balls that fall in a...
of the Palma Ceia Country Club golf course. David P. Davis, developer of Davis Islands, was playing with Dr. J. Brown Farrior, James Swann, and Mayor Chancy of Tampa. The city had considered expanding the existing George Keller Memorial Hospital, located at 306 North Boulevard in what had been the grounds of the Tampa Bay Hotel, but had found such expansion unworkable. Instead, it approached Davis about building upon the Davis Islands land that he had deeded to the city. On the golf course, Davis asked Farrior, who was then chairman of the city's Committee for the Construction of Tampa Municipal Hospital, where he wanted the hospital sited, drawing a rough map of the Islands in the sand. Farrior indicated the tip of the island.
Whether this story is true or not, that is where the hospital construction began in March 1926, voters in the city having approved a USD
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
215,000 bond issue to fund construction in 1924. The hospital building was complete by the next year, the final construction cost having been USD300,000, with patients moving to there from the George Keller Memorial Hospital on 1927-11-15. James Swann became the Chairman of the board of directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of Tampa Municipal.
The original hospital building, the inscription over whose main entrance archway reads "Tampa Municipal Hospital Memorial to Gordon Keller", was originally surrounded by parkland, and dominated the landscape of Davis Islands. It provided 250 hospital beds for patients. Whilst it still stands today, it has become almost wholly obscured from view by new buildings, and additions to the hospital, that surround it. In 1936, the Gordon Keller School expanded into a new building next to the original.
In 1956, the hospital was renamed to Tampa General Hospital. In 1991, the original building was renamed after Clara Frye, an African American nurse who ran the Clara Frye Hospital for 20 years in the early 1900s, and after whom the Clara Frye Memorial Hospital that existed in West Tampa from 1938 to 1967 had been named. Frye admitted patient of all races, African American or otherwise, to her hospital. The Tampa Municipal Hospital did not admit African American patients until the 1950s.
Inconvenience
Rodney Kite-Powell, curator of the Tampa Bay History Centre, opines that neither the voters of 1924 nor the city's hospital construction committee gave much thought to the location of the hospital, with their primary motivation apparently being merely that the city already owned the land. The location of the hospital has proven to be inconvenient over the years, as Davis Islands were originally accessible from elsewhere via just one bridge (now two). Evacuations of the entire hospital during hurricane season have not been uncommon.The impact of Hurricane Elena
Hurricane Elena
Hurricane Elena was a category 3 major hurricane that produced heavy damage along the Gulf Coast of the United States in August and September of the 1985 Atlantic hurricane season. The fifth tropical storm, fourth hurricane, and first major hurricane of the season, Elena developed near Cuba from a...
caused the hospital's main generator plant to be moved out of its previous location in the basement to a higher location, reducing the risk of it being rendered inoperational by flooding, but the hospital site is still vulnerable to the Davis Islands bridges being washed out during a hurricane.
The hospital itself is now largely proofed against storms, despite the continuing vulnerability of the island it sits upon. Recent building work in the 21st century, on the Bayshore Pavilion, has incorporated many of the hospital design recommendations of Washington Hospital Center's ER One project. All critical functions have been placed at or above the second level of the building, above the storm surge
Storm surge
A storm surge is an offshore rise of water associated with a low pressure weather system, typically tropical cyclones and strong extratropical cyclones. Storm surges are caused primarily by high winds pushing on the ocean's surface. The wind causes the water to pile up higher than the ordinary sea...
level, placing emergency room parking on the first level.