CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The demolition of CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial began on Monday.
The Nueces County Hospital District and the CHRISTUS Spohn Health System recognized the history and legacy of the building on Monday in a special ceremony held at the hospital.
First opened in 1944, Memorial Hospital was named in honor of the veterans that died serving in World War II. Originally built with no central heating and air, several expansions and renovations have taken place of the years.
Several high-profile patients have been served at the hospital over the years including the late Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla in 1995 and Texas attorney Harry Whittington who recovered in the hospital after a hunting accident with then Vice President Dick Cheney in 2006.
The hospital was transferred from Nueces County to the CHRISTUS Health System in 1999.
The last of the services by CHRISTUS Health System left the building earlier this year.
“Thanks to so many strong physician partnerships we’ve been able to expand our primary care network and ambulatory facilities,” said CHRISTUS Spohn Health System Chief Executive Officer, Osbert Blow. “We know health care is no longer just delivered within the walls of one hospital. To meet the needs of our amazing community, we have to continue to transform and modernize the way we deliver care which includes being focused on the patients we are so privileged to serve.”
