Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Administration Medical Center

Coordinates: 37°29′53″N 77°28′01″W / 37.49796°N 77.46681°W / 37.49796; -77.46681

Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Administration Medical Center is located in Richmond, Virginia.

History

McGuire VA Hospital (as it is known locally) was established on the land of a former racetrack in Chesterfield County, Virginia after World War II along State Route 10 and Richmond's Belt Boulevard, an early highway bypass. That area of the county, about 6 miles (10 km) from downtown Richmond in the Southside area, was annexed by the independent city in 1970.

The facility was the first Veterans Administration hospital to perform heart transplant surgery in the 1970s. It is also a major facility for patients with spinal cord injuries. The physical plant was entirely rebuilt and expanded in the late 20th century.

Hunter Holmes McGuire, M.D.

The facility was named in honor of Hunter Holmes McGuire, M.D. (1835-1900). Dr. Hunter McGuire was a famous Virginian notable for being the young personal physician to Confederate Major General Stonewall Jackson during the American Civil War (1861-1865).

Dr. McGuire was a resident of nearby Bon Air outside Richmond and served as a president of the American Medical Association. Prominent in his field, Dr. McGuire helped found the medical schools and institutions which became important portions of the Medical College of Virginia (MCV), organized by his son, Dr. Stuart McGuire, which became part of Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in 1968.

In addition to the VA hospital, Hunter Holmes McGuire is also memorialized by a statue in Capitol Square at the Virginia State Capitol, the only physician so honored.

Current facility, future plans

The facility has a full range of health care services ranging from comprehensive outpatient care to complex inpatient services such as heart, liver and lung transplantation, and care of traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries. The facility is a leader in the care for traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) and is one of four Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers that provide intensive inpatient treatment for traumatic brain injuries as well as other injuries sustained during combat. The medical center is also one of six highly specialized centers that provides care and conducts research on Parkinsons Disease in its Parkinsons Disease Research Education and Clinical Care Center (PDRECCC)

The medical center currently has 399 operating beds, which includes acute care, spinal cord injury, mental health services, women's health center and a skilled nursing home.

Plans have been announced to expand the facility substantially in the early 21st century. It is located on a large site with additional land available for that purpose. Currently there are plans to expanded specialty clinic area and Polytrauma Center.