[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 8, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H123]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING NEW CONSTRUCTION OF JOHN H. STROGER, JR. HOSPITAL OF COOK 
                                 COUNTY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Rehberg). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, a few days ago the Cook County 
Board of Commissioners opened a brand new public hospital in Chicago, 
the John H. Stroger Cook County Hospital. I rise to congratulate and 
commend President Stroger, the Cook County Board of Commissioners, Ms. 
Ruth Rothstein, director of the Bureau of Health Services for the 
county, Mr. Lacy Clay, director of the hospital, and all of the staff 
for making this milestone possible.
  Mr. Speaker, Cook County Hospital is one of the finest hospitals in 
the Seventh Congressional District and in the nation. Since the 1800s, 
Cook County Hospital has delivered comprehensive primary, specialty and 
tertiary health care services to all residents of Cook County, despite 
socioeconomic status, being uninsured, or their ability to pay. With 
the astonishing fact that 98 percent of patients who arrive alive at 
the trauma center survive, this public hospitals is well known 
nationwide.
  Cook County Hospital excels in services and expertise for its level I 
trauma center, burn unit, the largest neonatal intensive care unit in 
the Midwest and its women's cancer center, which treats 30 percent of 
the women with breast cancer in the county. Yet Cook County Hospital 
could not be the model for public hospitals in our Nation if it were 
not for the hospital's extraordinary staff. The staff is commended for 
their consistent dedication and enthusiasm for giving the highest 
quality of care, even when they worked in a hospital constructed over 
100 years ago, which made the task of serving the needs of patients 
much more complicated.
  However, the staff has extended their participation of saving lives 
in the hospital to help save lives in the communities surrounding the 
hospital. Though half of the admissions in the trauma unit are a result 
of assaults, and the majority of those from gun violence, the hospital 
staff decided to pursue efforts to reduce violence by creating a 
violence prevention task force, which helped spawn the Chicago Violence 
Prevention Strategic Plan.
  However, on Thursday, December 12, 2002, the historic beauty on West 
Harrison Street that inspired the hit television show ``ER'' stopped 
accepting patients. The remarkable medical staff and their patients 
were moved to the new modern facility, the John H. Stroger, Jr. 
Hospital of Cook County. The patients and staff will now be air 
conditioned in the summer, have access to oxygen hookups in each room, 
and have a hospital-wide paging system.
  And although the staff expects quality of care to improve along with 
efficiency, they are certain that the largest impact will be on 
patients, who gained private bathrooms for the first time, televisions 
and telephones in their rooms, and nurses stations that are in close 
proximity in the new hospital. This new hospital will have fewer beds 
and is smaller than the old, but it is a reflection of the changing 
times, with fewer inpatient and a growing number of outpatient 
procedures.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe that this new development is a testament to 
Cook County's sensitivity and farsightedness by investing in public 
health care at a time when cities and counties around the country are 
closing public hospitals or cutting back services. I commend the Cook 
County Board in its efforts to make real their mission statement: to 
provide a comprehensive program of quality care with respect and 
dignity to the residents of Cook County regardless of their ability to 
pay.
  This new hospital positions the county to do just that, and I again 
commend them for their farsightedness and their sensitivity in 
providing high-quality health care to even those with the least ability 
to pay.

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