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About Us
Our History
Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center—Mishawaka
Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ
The seeds of Saint Joseph Community Hospital were planted in the mid-1800’s in the little village of Dernbach, Germany. A young woman named Katherine Kasper saw her neighbors in need and reached out to help them. She cared for the sick in their homes, often keeping the nightwatch with people who were dying. Katherine was quite poor, as were most of the people of Dernbach. She reached out to help with her time, her kindness and her prayerful attitude. Other young women saw Kasper’s charitable deeds and soon joined her in her efforts to relieve suffering. Thus began the community of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ. Kasper did not set out to start a religious community. Her intent was to help her neighbors, and her good works attracted like-minded women to join her. An international religious community evolved from that simple beginning.
Over the years, the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ have continued to respond to the needs of their neighbors. When Bishop Luers of the Fort Wayne Diocese in Indiana asked for Sisters to work among the German immigrants in his diocese, in that far away country of the United States, the sisters came. Eight Poor Handmaids arrived in Hessen Castle, Ind., in August of 1868. Response to needs in different parts of the Midwest brought the Sisters to Mishawaka in 1878. Here the Sisters cared for the sick in their homes. In 1908 when physicians in Mishawaka became convinced of the need for a hospital to be built, they turned to the Sisters for help. The Sisters, physicians, businessmen and a Catholic priest worked together to build the hospital which opened in 1910. Sister Columba, a Poor Handmaid, was the first administrator of the new 40-bed hospital.
Continuing to respond to the needs of the community, the maternity unit was opened in 1916. In 1918 a 75-bed wing was added. The need for nurses prompted Sister Columba to open the School of Nursing in 1919, graduating its first four nurses in 1922. The need for more patient rooms continued, causing a third addition to be constructed in 1948.
Saint Joseph Hospital continued to expand services, and in 1971 the area’s first total hip replacement surgery was performed. In 1978 the Genesis Alternative Birth Center was opened, another first in the area. Programs and services continued to be added as the need for them arose. Edison Lakes Medical Center, an outpatient surgical center, was added in 1992 and expanded in 2001 to include additional surgical suites and an eye surgery center. At the same time, the hospital community was looking into the broader community to discover ways to help the underserved. Among other endeavors, the Healthy Family Center opened its doors. Other organizations, like the Women’s Care Center and Hannah’s House, are aided by Foundation fundraisers.
Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center’s commitment to the community continued to grow, adding a Healthy Family Center in Elkhart and an Osteopathic Family Practice Residence Clinic in South Bend, a renovated cardiac catheration lab, a state-of-the art surgical wing and physician clinics. Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center—Mishawaka also hosts the only osteopathic medical education program in the area. From its beginning to the present day, Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center has been shaped by the needs of the communities it serves.
When Saint Joseph’s Regional Medical Center merged its hospitals in South Bend and Plymouth with Ancilla healthcare merged in November 2000, we became the largest Catholic health care network in Northcentral Indiana. Our organization is supported by more than 3,500 people, united in mission and dedicated to the values of this health ministry. Its essence arises from the healing ministry of the Church and lives in the dedication of each employee, physician, volunteer, trustee or partner who collaborates to improve the health of our communities. Together we lift up a compelling voice—a voice of justice, respect and compassion for those we serve.
