History

For nearly 150 years, St. Elizabeth has been the heart and soul of healthcare in Northern Kentucky. Over that time, we have grown into the topnotch, multi-faceted organization that all of Greater Cincinnati views today as the gold standard in medicine.

We began quite humbly though, out of the goodness of the hearts of a small group of people who saw a great and growing need for quality medical care in Northern Kentucky in 1861. Covington resident, Henrietta Cleveland, got everything rolling when she went to the Sisters of the Poor in Cincinnati about the increasing need for a hospital in her area.

Soon, Covington’s first bishop, the Most Rev. George Carrell, enlisted three sisters from Germany to take on the daunting task. The nuns worked with Mrs. Cleveland, and the ladies of the first St. Elizabeth Support Guild, to raise the funds needed to purchase a building on Seventh Street, which soon became the hospital which they named after St. Elizabeth of Hungary. The first patient was admitted on Jan. 23, 1861, followed by 78 more patients in that first year. 

But, the demand for services from that fledgling organization grew swiftly, and over the next 53 years, the sisters would have to move twice to acquire ever larger facilities to treat those in need. In fact, by 1914 St. Elizabeth was opening a huge new facility on 21st Street that many locally knew for years as the St. Elizabeth North Unit.

Then, in 1948, the citizens of Campbell County were realizing that they, too, had a dire need for a hospital in their growing area. That’s when voters there passed a bond issue to build what we now know as St. Elizabeth Fort Thomas. Within five years, the new Grand Avenue facility opened with 128 beds. And, less than 10 years later, two more floors were added, followed by intensive and coronary care units in the early 1970s.

As Northern Kentucky Grew, So Did St. Elizabeth
As Northern Kentucky’s population continued to soar and spread out, St. Elizabeth responded by opening its Edgewood facility with 182 beds in 1978. Meanwhile, burgeoning growth in Boone County made plain the need for a state-of-the-art medical facility in that area. In 1989, the hospital we now call St. Elizabeth Florence opened in Boone County’s largest city to serve the soaring population of the area.

As these facilities grew and added space and specialty services, the need for healthcare in Northern Kentucky’s more rural areas became increasingly clear. Again St. Elizabeth responded to the need. In 1980, a Pendleton County hospital was purchased that is now known as St. Elizabeth Falmouth, Northern Kentucky’s only inpatient drug and alcohol treatment center. Then, 10 years later, we began managing the facility now known as St. Elizabeth Grant, in Williamstown.

As we crossed into the new millennium, our pace of growth continued to keep us on the cutting edge of medical technology and service. Over the past decade, St. Elizabeth Healthcare has continued to expand our offerings through the opening of a flurry of new services, including the Union Diagnostics Center, a $6.4 million hospice center and pediatric urgent care center, to name just a few.

Merger of Organizations Sets the Stage for a Bright Future
All these achievements were capped off in late 2008, when two medical powerhouses – St. Elizabeth Medical Center and the St. Luke Hospitals - joined forces to become one healthcare system. Today, our thriving, united organization is a regional healthcare leader. And we are poised to become a national leader, as well.

With more than 6,000 employees working at our major facilities in Covington, Edgewood, Falmouth, Florence, Fort Thomas and Grant County - as well as a myriad of other services and centers for care - St. Elizabeth Healthcare offers an unparalleled level of expertise in an environment of unending compassion. We’re committed to working with you and each other to deliver the best healthcare available to everyone in our rich and vibrant community.