Hennepin County Medical Center

Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) is a Level I trauma center based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the county seat of Hennepin County. The primary 422-bed facility is located on five city blocks across the street from the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, with satellite clinics in Minneapolis, Brooklyn Center, and Richfield. HCMC has been listed among America's Best Hospitals by US News & World Report magazine every year since 1999. Some patients come a long distance to be treated at HCMC because of the recognized trauma surgery specialists, transplant services, advanced endoscopy/hepatobilliary center, and the region's only hyperbaric oxygen chamber.

History
The hospital was created in 1887 as the Minneapolis City Hospital, then referred to as "General Hospital" or "City Hospital", a block from its current main building. Ownership was transferred to the county in 1964, when it was renamed Hennepin County General Hospital. The hospital took its current name in 1974. By the early 1970s, the hospital was a disorganized patchwork of buildings, leading to the decision to clear and rebuild the facility. The current hospital facility was completed in 1976, following a $25 million bond passed by voters in 1969. The hospital expanded in 1991 when the adjacent Metropolitan-Mount Sinai Medical Center closed. It gained Level I trauma center status in 1989, the first such site in the state. The hospital underwent a governance change in January 2007, which created a new governing entity with greater autonomy from the county government. The public mission of the hospital did not change, but this transition was made in an attempt to ensure the long-term viability of the hospital.

Residency programs
HCMC has independent residency programs in Emergency Medicine, Surgery, Family Medicine and Internal Medicine. In addition, it is a rotating site for many programs from the University of Minnesota, including otolaryngology, obstetrics/gynecology, orthopedics, neurosurgery, neurology, ophthalmology, and many medical subspecialty fellowships. It has independent fellowships in geriatrics, critical care medicine and sleep medicine.

Internship opportunity
Students from UCIMED, a medical school located at Costa Rica are given the opportunity to do internship at the hospital. The initiative started thanks to an agreement signed on February 2006. Many of the students from UCIMED end up as residents at HCMC.

EMS
HCMC also provides emergency medical services to parts of the Cities of Minneapolis, Minnetonka, Golden Valley, and Shorewood, as well as being the EMS provider for Eden Prairie, St. Louis Park, Hopkins, St. Anthony, Woodland, Excelsior, Deephaven, Tonka Bay, Richfield, and most of Minnetonka (South of 394). There are 19 Ambulances, 3 Medical Director vehicles, and 2 Supervisor Units utilized in its fleet (as of January 05). A MCI trailer is on hand for MCI incidents in its coverage area. It is estimated that HCMC is on track for over 60,000 911 calls for 2007.