History
Methodist Health System was founded nearly a century ago by Methodist ministers and civic leaders and placed in the heart of our city’s underserved neighborhoods.
Back then, we were simply Dallas Methodist Hospital, a 100-bed facility that began operating on Christmas Eve 1927. The hospital held its official opening on January 27, 1928.
Thriving and expanding in Dallas
After persevering through the early years and the Great Depression, Dallas Methodist Hospital began to truly thrive and expand in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1951, a three-story student nurse's residence was constructed near the hospital and in 1966 the Martin and Charlotte Weiss Educational Building opened, providing classroom space for nursing education and a large auditorium for community programs. By the 1960s, Dallas Methodist Hospital grew to include 420 beds.
In 1979, Methodist starts its trauma program. Also that year, Methodist opened its first neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In 1980, the transplant program begins at Methodist with the first kidney transplant. Its first heart transplant follows in 1986, and in 2003, the hospital added a liver transplant program.
In July 2014, Methodist Dallas opened of the six-story, 248,000-square-foot Charles A. Sammons Trauma and Critical Care Tower allowing us to provide an advanced level of care to nearly 90,000 patients a year. The following year, the enhanced services and expertise garnered a Level I Trauma designation from the American College of Surgeons. Methodist Dallas became the third Level I Trauma center in Dallas County, which means it can provide total care for every aspect of injury – from prevention through rehabilitation
As a major medical center, Methodist Dallas Medical Center now provides a full spectrum of care with more than 100 specialties.
Methodist Charlton opens to serve Southern Dallas
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Methodist Hospitals of Dallas continued to grow. In 1975, Charlton Methodist Hospital opened its doors to serve the growing communities of Southern Dallas County. For over 45 years, Methodist Health System through Methodist Charlton has made major investments in the Best Southwest Communities. Among them, in 1987, a $2.7 million outpatient care center opened. In 1997, construction began on a $30 million expansion project that included a new cancer center, cafeteria, family and sports medicine center, gastroenterology department, auditorium, and professional office building.
In 2018, Methodist Charlton open the first Heart Failure Clinic in the Best Southwest region. In April 2021, the new Dr. Stephen and Marilyn Mansfield Oncology Unit opened. It’s a 12-bed dedicated oncology treatment unit.
A new $171 million emergency department is under construction to address the growing need for emergence care. The new emergency department will be state-of-the art including larger waiting rooms, patient triage areas and more trauma and critical care rooms to expedite patient care. The new emergency department at Methodist Charlton is scheduled to open in 2022.
Methodist Mansfield opens
Growth has been the hallmark of the past several years for Methodist Health System.
In December 2006, we opened Methodist Mansfield Medical Center to serve the vibrant Mansfield community and the surrounding communities of south Arlington and south Grand Prairie.
In 2012, Methodist Mansfield completed a major expansion of the Women's Pavilion, creating a total of 13 labor and delivery suites to accommodate up to 3,800 deliveries each year. Before its tenth anniversary, Methodist Mansfield opened its second tower with 110,000 square feet of space for expanded women’s health, cardiology, operating rooms, 86 private patient rooms, and gastroenterology (GI) services.
The Amon G. Carter Foundation Heart and Vascular Center opened at the same time, providing enhanced and advanced cardiac services and procedures.
Methodist Richardson Medical Center
In June 2009, Richardson Regional Medical Center joined the Methodist family. Methodist Richardson Medical Center and Methodist Richardson Medical Center Bush/Renner expanded the Methodist footprint to serve communities in Richardson, Garland, North Dallas, Plano, Sachse, Wylie, and the surrounding areas.
In April 2014, Methodist Richardson Medical Centeropened as a new 125-bed, four-story acute care hospital, on the southeast corner of Renner Road and President George Bush Highway. In 2018, the hospital began an $85 million expansion years ahead of schedule to add a parking garage, operating room, pre-op rooms, and two additional patient floors with 150 beds.
Methodist grows in Midlothian and Southlake
Methodist Midlothian Medical Center became the first hospital in the history of Midlothian when it opened in November 2020.
The $175 million, 67-acre campus includes a five story, 200,000-square-foot medical center, and a 45,000 square-foot medical office building. Methodist Midlothian has 46 beds and be able to expand to 80 if necessary.
It will offer a range of services that include emergency services, advanced surgery, and labor and delivery.
In 2021, Methodist Southlake Medical Center joined the Methodist family as a wholly owned facility.
It is the 12th hospital owned by or affiliated with Methodist Health System.
Joint ventures
As part of an affiliation between Methodist Health System and Kindred Healthcare, the 40-bed Methodist Rehabilitation Hospital opened as a distinct legal entity in 2008 to offer specialized care to patients recovering from strokes, brain and spinal cord injuries, multi-trauma, neurological disorders, cardiopulmonary procedures, and complex orthopedic surgeries.
In 2008, ground was broken on Methodist McKinney Hospital, a 15-bed hospital which will be operated by a distinct legal entity created through a joint venture between area physicians, Methodist Health System, and NueHealth. Methodist McKinney Hospital opened in February 2010.
In November 2010, the Methodist Hospital for Surgery, a joint venture partnership between area physicians, Methodist Health System, and NueHealth, opened in Addison.
In 2015, Methodist opens the Texas Rehabilitation Hospital of Arlington, a joint venture among Methodist, Texas Health Resources, and Kindred Healthcare. Also that year, Methodist acquired several diagnostic imaging centers throughout North Texas.
In 2020, Methodist Charlton opened a 100-bed joint venture skilled nursing facility in DeSoto.
Grounded in Faith
Our original hospital was envisioned, funded, and supported largely with the help of the United Methodist Church, and our covenant agreement with the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church stands to this day. Throughout our history we've operated consistent with the United Methodist Church's healing ministry. The ties to the United Methodist Church have been strengthened further by the presence of Methodist ministers and church members on governing boards, an ongoing commitment to pastoral education, 24-hour chaplain services, and health ministries at local churches.
Committed to Our Community — Now and Into the Future
Methodist's continued commitment to the community is represented in a number of outreach activities, including its mobile mammography, health screenings, and maternity services at Methodist Dallas Medical Center. The Methodist Dallas Golden Cross Academic Clinic offers a medical home for members of the Dallas community in need of affordable health care for internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, and general surgical services.
The Life Shines Bright Pregnancy Program, offered through the Methodist Dallas Golden Cross Academic Clinic, has proven effective in dramatically reducing premature births among its participants.
The Asian Breast Health Outreach Projectat Methodist Richardson Medical Center provides education and mammogram screenings for uninsured and under insured Asian women.
In 2012 the Methodist Dallas Medical Center Auxiliary celebrated its 90th anniversary of serving and supporting the hospital and its patients.
Innovative and Specialized Patient Care
Our patients have always been our first priority, and we believe that innovative and specialized care is an essential component of that commitment. We are the proud home of a long-standing, patient-centered organ transplant program. We've continued to secure our position on the leading edge of medicine through a wide variety of highly specialized services and facilities and a Graduate Medical Education teaching program that draws physicians from medical schools across the nation.
A Bright Tomorrow
Our first hospital, Dallas Methodist Hospital, served a population of 158,000. Today Methodist Health System's service areas cover a population of well over three million people. We believe that the innovation, dedication, and vision that have helped us thrive over the past decades will help ensure our strength well into the future. We look forward to serving our community for generations to come.