History

History of Fairbanks Memorial Hospital

Fairbanks’ only hospital, St. Joseph’s, was owned and operated by the Sisters of Charity since 1910. In June 1967, the Sisters announced plans to close the hospital. The devastating flood in Fairbanks in August 1967 sealed the fate of St. Joseph’s. Voters rejected a $5.5 million bond issue for a new hospital, but in 1968, the Greater Fairbanks Community Hospital Foundation (GFCHF) was formed to raise funds for a new facility.

The community’s initial pledge goal of $1 million was quickly surpassed by April 1968. In June, the city gifted GFCHF 25 acres of land at 16th and Cowles. With $6 million in State and Federal matching funds secured, the community raised an additional $500,000. Groundbreaking for the new hospital took place in May 1970, and Fairbanks Memorial Hospital (FMH) opened its doors in March 1972, debt-free and operated by LHHS.

FMH continued to expand to meet the growing needs of the community. The North Tower groundbreaking occurred in 1976, with its opening in 1978, which included a new ICU. In 1992, the Women’s Center was remodeled, and in 1994, the new Denali Center long-term care facility (formerly Carriage North) was opened. The Chief Andrew Isaac Health Center moved into the South Tower in 1995.

Additional expansions followed, including the completion of the Outpatient Facility in 1996 and renovations to the Emergency Department in 1997. The Cancer Treatment Center opened in 2000, followed by the Imaging Center in 2005. Further upgrades included an expanded Emergency Department and a new Cardiac Catheterization Lab in 2007. The Porter Heart Center opened in 2008.

In 2015, plans were announced for the modernization and replacement of FMH’s surgery suites, and the new surgery tower was completed in April 2017.

Beginning January 1, 2017, Tanana Valley Clinic, Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and Denali Center became part of Foundation Health Partners, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Greater Fairbanks Community Hospital Foundation. Foundation Health Partners operates all three facilities through a 15-member Board of Directors.

Community owned and now community operated – our commitment to the community continues. At Tanana Valley Clinic, Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and Denali Center, our patients and residents are at the heart of everything we do.

St. Joseph’s in 1968

FMH Groundbreaking in 1970

FMH construction