about us: River Hospital - Serving the Thousand Islands ... Close to home

about us

River Hospital Board of Trustees

Front Left: Patricia Chalk, Secretary; Nellie Taylor, Chair; Laura Coles; Frances Brown; Jeanne Snow, Treasurer; Back Left: Richard Bennett; Frederick Schmitt; Joseph Russell; Theodore Elk; Brian Wilcox; Dr. Robert Tague (Missing from photo: Robert Toole, Vice Chair; and Craig Garlock)

Honorary Chairman - Naomi Custis

Officers - Nellie Taylor, Chair | Robert Toole, Vice Chair | Patricia Chalk, Secretary | Jeanne Snow, Treasurer

Trustees - Frances Brown | Robert C. Tague, DDS | Richard Bennett | Theodore Elk | Joseph Russell | Frederick Schmitt | Laura Coles | Brian Wilcox | Craig Garlock

Trustees Emeritus - Daniel Gregory, MD | Ross Jones | J. Richard Munro | Donald Ceresoli

Our CEO

Mr. Ben Moore, III joined River Hospital as the Chief Executive Officer beginning August 28, 2006. Mr. Moore holds a Masters of Health Administration from Duke University and a Bachelors of Arts degree in Government from Harvard University. Mr. Moore has served on the Boards of Directors of the Upstate Medical University Foundation, Hospice of Central New York, the Syracuse Community Health Center and the Hospital Executive Council. Mr. Moore has had a distinguished career as a senior healthcare executive, having led organizations for over twenty-five years through institutional strategic planning and implementation, marketing and business development. Mr. Moore served as Executive Director of University Hospital of SUNY Upstate Medical University from 1993-2005 and as Chief Operating Officer from 1987-1994. Mr. Moore served most recently as the Hospital Management Coordinator prior to his retirement in February 2006, after almost twenty years of service to the hospital.

River Hospital History

	1941 -The first hospital in Alexandria Bay was founded by Dr. Walter G. Robinson. It was housed in the Cornwall House on Market Street. This hospital served the community throughout the 1940s.
River Hospital is located on the former site of the Thousand Islands House, once a premier resort hotel built in 1872 by Colonel O.G. Staples. The structure was four stories high, and would accommodate 700 guests. Many notable people stayed at the hotel during its heyday, including industrialist Andrew Carnegie, writer Mark Twain, and statesman Henry Cabot Lodge. By the 1930's, during the Great Depression, the hotel was abandoned and the property was sold in 1935 to Mr. Abe Cooper of Syracuse, who razed the structure. The site was sold to the Edward John Noble Foundation Inc. in 1946 for construction of the new hospital.
	1947 - Edward John Noble pledged $125,000, one half the cost of building a hospital, if the people of Alexandria Bay could raise the other half. The Edward John Noble Foundation was founded to promote a cohesive health system for the North Country. (Photo: Edward John Noble)
	1949 - Through the efforts of the local community and the generosity of Edward John Noble and Abe Cooper, who offered a favorable deal on the riverfront property, ground was broken for the first phase of the hospital. (Photo: Abe Cooper) Ground breaking for the new Noble Foundation Hospital, later to become River Hospital, was held in 1949 after a large public fund-raising campaign. The two-story structure had a capacity of more than 25 beds, including a pediatrics room, maternity section and nursery. There were also doctors' offices, an operating room, emergency room, kitchen and dining room, a laboratory, radiology unit, and fluoroscopic rooms.
	1950 - July 14, the Edward John Noble Hospital, a 29 bed facility, was dedicated. Mr. Noble and Mr. Royal Garlock, President of the Hospital Board, sealed historical documents in the cornerstone declaring the hospital officially the property of the people. Dr. Charles W. Mayo, of the Mayo Clinic, was the keynote speaker.
	1970 - The second story was added to the facility and the bed capacity increased to 51 beds, and provided a wider range of services to 20,000 permanent residents and more than 80,000 summer residents and visitors.
1991 - As a result of radical changes in the healthcare industry during the 1980s, EJ Noble Hospital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and entered into a relationship with Samaritan Medical Center, Watertown, in an effort to maintain quality healthcare services.
2000 - Threatened with closure of the hospital, a group of concerned citizens formed a task force to appeal to the New York State Department of Health to become an independent institution.
	April 15, 2003 - The hospital is 'reborn' as an independent facility and named "River Hospital".
In the years that followed the opening of River Hospital in April 2003, until the conclusion of the 2006 fiscal year in December 2006, River Hospital was confronted with many challenges as a start up operation. There were many obstacles to overcome in establishing services in the area such as attracting staff, and physicians, and assuring the community that River Hospital was a viable entity. Fortunately, there was tremendous community support for River Hospital including significant philanthropy which was of great assistance to River Hospital in navigating the difficulties in establishing financial viability. Fortunately, at the end of fiscal year 2006 all the initially planned elements for services at River Hospital were about to be initiated. The final program was an Ambulatory Surgery Program.
September 2007 - River Hospital opened its Ambulatory Surgery Unit, The Anthony C. "Tony" Malara Operating Suite. This addition to the services provided by River Hospital now offers the option of having minor surgical procedures and colonoscopies performed on an outpatient basis, close to home.
The Board of Directors, realizing that River Hospital was about to transition from a start up operation to a stable operating environment, determined that a strategic planning process should be initiated. Currently, the hospital operates 27 long term care beds, 15 acute care beds and 9 swing beds. The hospital also operates a Primary Care Clinic and has an active Emergency Room. Laboratory, Physical Therapy, Respiratory Therapy, and Radiology services are available. After considerable administrative reorganization, the fiscal environment has improved significantly. River Hospital met its forecast with its first break-even year for fiscal year 2007.

"Abide"

"Abide" represents the "life cycle," the continuous movement preserving and protecting lives of patients as well as the facility itself. The three waves rolling together act as a sense of spirituality. The waves which overflow the base stone, acknowledge the community outpouring of concern and caring to keep this hospital alive and functional.

• Water to Native Americans, represents sustenance of life.
• Waves display movement.
• The circle, a continuum as in life cycle.
• Birds in flight represent free spirits.
• Terns classified as an endangered species.

Community Service Plan

I. The mission statement of River Hospital

It is the mission of River Hospital to provide compassionate, cost effective and accessible primary health care to the year round and seasonal residents, and visitors of the River Communities. The hospital prides itself on high quality outpatient, inpatient and long term care while meeting individual and community needs through partnerships with our patients and communities we serve.

II. Historical Development

On April 15, 2003, River Hospital commenced operations; with River Community Clinic opening for business on April 29, 2003. The facility had previously been known as EJ Noble/Samaritan Hospital at Alexandria Bay. The facility had been independent until approximately 1991, and then had been acquired by Samaritan Hospital of Watertown, New York. While under the aegis of Good Samaritan, it was determined that EJ Noble Samaritan should be closed. There was a significant community effort launched to preserve the acute facility for the communities of Alexandria Bay, as well as Clayton and other communities in this region. These efforts were successful and River Hospital was awarded a Certificate of Need and Operating License by the Department of Health. From the opening of River Hospital in April 2003 until the conclusion of the 2006 fiscal year in December 2006, River Hospital was confronted with many challenges as a start up operation. There were many obstacles to overcome in establishing services in the area such as attracting staff, and physicians, and assuring the community that River Hospital was a viable entity. Fortunately, there was tremendous community support for River Hospital including significant philanthropy which was of great assistance to River Hospital in navigating the difficulties in establishing financial viability. Fortunately, at the end of fiscal year 2006 all the initially planned elements for services at River Hospital were about to be initiated. The final program was an Ambulatory Surgery Program which was completed in September 2007.

III. Current Status

The Board of Directors, realizing that River Hospital was about to transition from a start up operation to a stable operating environment, determined that a strategic planning process should be initiated. Currently, the hospital operates 27 long term care beds, 15 acute care beds and 9 swing beds. The hospital also operates a Primary Care Clinic and has an active Emergency Room. Laboratory, Physical Therapy, Respiratory and Cardiopulmonary Care, Radiology services, Adult Day Care Program, Social Services and Outpatient Nutrition Counseling and Education are available. After considerable administrative reorganization, the fiscal environment has improved significantly. River Hospital met its forecast with its first break-even year for fiscal year 2007.

IV. Planning for the Future

The Board of Directors has charged the hospital administration with increasing appropriate services to the community. Additionally, the expectation of the Board for River Hospital is to provide appropriate services in the most professional manner possible. In order to determine appropriate additional services for this community, a strategic planning process was initiated in February 2007. The initial efforts were focused on collecting appropriate data to make an assessment of the marketing position of River Hospital, its success in its operations, and opportunities for increased service. In July 2007, the hospital initiating a community wide survey, "The River Communities Health Assessment", to include the towns of Alexandria Bay, Clayton, Orleans, Cape Vincent, Theresa, Hammond, as well as Thousand Island Park. This survey was conducted under the auspices of The Center for Community Studies at Jefferson Community College, in cooperation with Dr. Hugh Fulmer, Scott Fulmer, medical students and local high schools. The results of this survey are key for the River Hospital Department Managers and River Hospital Planning Committee to determine the healthcare needs and desires of the residents and visitors of the communities served by this facility. This information will be used, along with the marketing and service profile data to propose new initiatives. During the review, the institution will seek additional community input, including community meetings and other avenues to ensure that the institution receives the best possible input into designing the services for the community. It is anticipated that this entire process will be completed in Fall 2008.

V. Corporate Structure

River Hospital is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit Critical Access Hospital, in the Village of Alexandria Bay, New York, which is located in Jefferson County. The hospital operates a primary care center on the hospital premises. It also operates a nursing home in the hospital facility.

Facility

River Hospital is a unique institution. The uniqueness is replicated in this web site. Our staff cares deeply about quality patient care and personal attention. We are focused on expanding our current services to the area communities, and visitors of this area. The staff's attitude is summed up in the description of the hospital logo. Our staff is committed to serving you and your family in the most compassionate, competent, and efficient manner. Some photos of the campus including Staff, Grounds, Access Dock, Rooms with a view

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