HISTORY

For over a 100 years, the Ashford Presbyterian Community Hospital or “El Presby”, has maintained its reputation as one of the most advanced nongovernmental hospitals in the Caribbean, and has been renowned for its high quality medical care as well as for its charitable efforts in favor of indigents. These were the original goals of the Presbyterian Mission when founding the Hospital in 1904. Nevertheless, the origins of the institution really date from 1900, the year in which the Dr. J. Milton Green, who was in charge of the Presbyterian Mission and of its Church in Santurce, made a request to provide medical aid to the community.

In 1901, Dr. Grace Williams Atkins, the first medical missionary in Puerto Rico, succeeded in her struggle to establish a hospital. In 1904 three wooden structures were built to accommodate a clinic, administrative offices, and patient quarters with capacity for 45 beds.

Also in 1904, training courses for nurses began. The first nurse who graduated from this training turned out to be an old patient of the institution.

In 1946, the Presbyterian Church determined that the Hospital was fully meeting its goals. Consequently, the Hospital, then known as Presbyterian Community Hospital, transferred its operations to a Board of Trustees comprised of representatives of the Puerto Rican community. The Board agreed to maintain the original goals of the Institution including its non-profit character and its nondiscriminatory admissions policy.

In 1958 the hospital became independent from the National Board of Missions. Under the name “Presbyterian Community Hospital” the institution received accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Three residence training programs were approved in 1961 by the American Medical Association’s Medical Educational Council.

In addition to expanding its occupation capacity, the Hospital multiplied the number of medical services offered to the community.

In 1979, the Board of Trustees decided to change the name of the Institution to: Ashford Memorial Community Hospital, to honor one of the pioneers of modern medicine, Dr. Bailey K. Ashford and to acknowledge his enormous contribution to the healthcare of the people of Puerto Rico. In 1984, the name of the hospital was reviewed by the Board and changed to Ashford Presbyterian Community Hospital, effective on January 1, 1985.

Now in the 21st century and in tune with the trends of the public we serve, the name of our institution was shortened to “El Presby” in 2004.

Our organization serves an area that includes the municipalities of San Juan, Carolina, Trujillo Alto, Cataño, and Toa Baja; focusing mainly on the Condado, Ocean Park, Isla Verde, Old San Juan, and Barrio Obrero boroughs. It also serves a large number of patients from other municipalities and from the Caribbean region as well. Thanks to our privileged location in the heart of Puerto Rico’s main tourist zone, our institution also serves a large percentage of the tourist population.

An annex to the main building provides space for one of the biggest and most versatile Emergency Rooms in the Caribbean. This new building has room for 207 additional beds, a pharmacy providing for the patients as well as the general public, and an Outpatient Surgery Center, one of the first of its kind established in Puerto Rico.

Our hospital provides primary and secondary care. In recent years our Institution has adapted its service systems. The change from a hospitalization system to a predominantly outpatient one has been a key factor in serving the growing demand for outpatient surgery as well as the demand for additional services such as: radiology, clinical laboratory, and others.

At this time, El Presby offers all the necessary services that characterize a modern hospital. Throughout our history, our facilities have evolved thanks to a process of modernization to such an extent that they have positioned our Hospital at the forefront of the healthcare industry within Puerto Rico, as well as the rest of the region.

We have also been recognized for introducing many new and innovative services and procedures. These recognitions include:

• The First hospital in the Antilles to be certified as “Grade A” by the American College of Surgeons (1926).
• The Presbyterian School of Nursing was the only regular affiliate to the American Red Cross Visiting Nurses Service- Later developed into the first affiliation with the Puerto Rico Public Health Services.
• The First hospital in Puerto Rico with an intern training program approved by the American Medical Association’s Medical Educational Council.
• The First hospital to start a Nurse Cadets School in Puerto Rico.
• The First Counseling Committee made up of San Juan residents and university professors to counsel on educational matters.
• Our Nursing Services division was the first to establish a training program for graduate nurses.
• The First Central Department of Supplies.
• First and only hospital having 100% of its nurses belong to American Association of Nurses.
• The First hospital in Puerto Rico to receive approval for the Medicare program, still in effect.
• The First hospital in Puerto Rico to receive accreditation by the Joint Commission, still effective.
• The First hospital in Puerto Rico to receive approval of the American Medical Association’s Council of Medical Education to establish residence programs in surgery, pediatrics, and anesthesiology.
• The only hospital in Puerto Rico that allows relatives’ participation in childbirths.
• The First hospital in Puerto Rico to receive the “Certificate of Intent to the Principles of the Global Baby–Friendly Initiative Hospital" given by UNICEF and the Worldwide Health Organization (1994).