As "the Village" grew daily with people coming to work at Hanford, the government was responsible to meet the needs of these workers and their families: everything from housing to schools, barber shops to laundry services, entertainment to food, to medical needs ranging from emergencies to dentistry. And, because of its isolated location, the potentially hazardous operations taking place at Hanford, and small and already overburdened area hospitals, the need for a hospital in Richland was great.

Plans for the medical facility began early in the wartime defense efforts; construction began in January 1944 and moved along quickly. Initially named the Richland Hospital, it received its first surgical patient on June 15, 1944.

It is now a new century, and just as "the Village" has grown from being government-owned and operated to being independent, so too has that medical facility grown and changed. Kadlec Medical Center remains the only hospital in the state of Washington and only one of few in the country which began as a government medical facility and was turned back to the citizens to be operated as a not-for-profit institution.

In December of 1943, the Richland Village had a total population of 918. By December of 1944, its population had exploded to 11,760 and by March 1945, that number had grown to 15,401, including nearly 4,800 children. In addition, at its peak an estimated 50,000 people lived at the temporary quarters of Camp Hanford.

Building to accommodate these workers and their families was taking place everywhere. Schools were being built. Churches were being planned while services were held in tents. Medical services were provided in a temporary facility while they awaited completion of the hospital.

The building of the hospital was a collaborative effort between the Army Corps of Engineers and DuPont, then the major contractor at the Hanford area. The original, one-story building was over 55,000 square feet and located on the site of the Corrado Medical Building. It was a traditional "army" facility, with a central hall and wings shooting off the hall.

On June 1, 1944, the personnel totals for the hospital included the superintendent, assistant superintendent, two doctors and a part-time surgeon, five nurses and a pharmacist. All medical services for the Village were expected to be met by this hospital force as well as providing employee physicals, dentistry and public health -- water quality, environmental health care and preventive care. Medical care was practically on an emergency only basis. The burgeoning population necessitated an increase in the staff as quickly as they could be procured. By July 1, 1945, the hospital employees totaled 117.

In addition to a lack of personnel when it opened, the hospital space itself proved inadequate to handle the medical needs of the new community even though the bed-to- population-ratio was over 5/1000 ( higher than the national average due to unknown industrial needs at Hanford and the high percentage of dormitory housed workers). The new hospital had 91 rooms that could hold 115 patients. There was no room for outpatient care, dental care and other services so a Medical-Dental building was started near the hospital and two houses provided 20 isolation beds as needed.

And, before it was opened it was also clear that the maternity ward was inadequate with only one delivery room, six beds and a six bassinet nursery. Enlargement of the maternity wing began even before the hospital itself was opened and this addition was completed by the following September. Twenty-two bassinets and 30 cribs were added.

The pediatric and obstetric loads during the early months of operation were indeed high. Richland led the nation in birth rate in 1946 with 35 births per 1,000 compared to a national average of 20 births per 1,000. This high birth rate is attributed to the large number of employees being in the 20 to 30 age group and, as one report from the time states, "...the Security program of the plant dampened social activities, which perhaps served to encourage more pregnancy." The actual number of babies born was a military secret at the time; the numbers were not released to the public because of a concern that population experts from Germany and Japan would be given a clue to the size of the Hanford work force.

The hospital was a closed facility providing services only for Hanford workers, their families and other citizens within the government controlled boundaries of Richland. People from other communities or surrounding rural areas were not allowed to use the facility.

One of the hospital's first patients was Lt. Col. Harry R. Kadlec, Deputy Area Engineer and Chief of the Construction for the Army Corps of Engineers at Hanford and a key figure in the operation of the project. Col. Kadlec was said to have literally worked himself to death. He suffered a heart attack on July 2, 1944 and subsequently died at the hospital which was to bear his name. His was the first death in the new facility. Upon his death, flags at the Hanford area were lowered to half-mast and government workers were given time off to attend his services which were held in the old Richland High Auditorium. On July 10, 1944, the Richland Hospital was renamed Kadlec Hospital.

During the first year , Kadlec Hospital served 3,153 patients.

In the early years it was difficult to obtain all of the essentials to equip the new hospital. There was no storage unit filled with supplies to fall back upon during the wartime crunch. The Auxiliary stepped in to help fill the gap, sewing and repairing linens and creating other items used in the hospital.

During the 1950s, Kadlec was the industrial medical facility for the Hanford project caring for Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and General Electric employees.

The first major transition of Kadlec came along as a part of the changes taking place in Richland in 1956. The Congress of the United States passed the Community Disposal Act and a major shift was ahead for Richland. Under the Act, the nation's "atomic" cities were to be removed from the control of the AEC and turned over to the citizens of those communities for self-governing. Kadlec was the first major community service unit to be given to the citizens for independent operation.

After much debate on various options for its operation, the Richland voters eventually selected the Methodist Board of Hospitals and Homes to own and operate the hospital. On September 10, 1956, Kadlec Hospital became Kadlec Methodist Hospital, a not-for-profit medical institution.

Dr. Horace Turner, the hospital's first civilian administrator, began operation of the hospital under the direction of a Board of Trustees and he described Kadlec as entirely different from the average hospital, largely because of the industrial medical setup needed for the work at Hanford. The hospital was no longer subsidized by the government and had to stand on its own. Prior to the takeover by the church, Kadlec was running in the red an average of $20,000 per month.

The community watched as Kadlec became a flagship of sorts in Richland for this new found way of doing business. Could they do it? Could they operate without government assistance yet still maintain the high level of care? The answer was yes.

By March, 1957, less than one year after taking over the hospital, Kadlec showed its first month of operation in the black as a privately owned organization.

One of the first moves by the new administration of the hospital was to open Kadlec to all area residents regardless of whether they worked in Richland or were employed at the Hanford area.

With the changing of the hospital's governing, the responsibility for employee physicals, public health and dentistry were also eventually spun off to separate agencies or private businesses.

A second major transition for the hospital happened in 1969. Kadlec had outgrown its original facility. Government funds were available to go toward the construction of a new building, but they could not be used for a religious-affiliated organization. The Board of Trustees of Kadlec Methodist Hospital turned the hospital over to a new non-profit corporation which operates the hospital today.

A community-wide fund raising drive was mounted to secure enough funds for a new building and $1 million was raised. The new building was started.

"Moving Day" was April 7, 1971 -- all patients and employees were transferred to the new four-story, 136 bed Kadlec Medical Center.

In 1981, Senator Henry M. Jackson helped break ground for an expansion project. Phase I of the project included a whole body CT scanner, a heart catherization lab, a new Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and state of the art Intensive Care Units for coronary and trauma patients. In 1987, Same Day Surgery was added and in 1991 the MRI facility began operation.