HJ401: Commending Inova Health System on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 401
Offered February 27, 2006
Commending Inova Health System on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.

Patrons-- Sickles, Albo, Amundson, Brink, Bulova, Callahan, Caputo, Ebbin, Eisenberg, Englin, Hugo, Hull, Marsden, May, McQuigg, Moran, Parrish, Plum, Poisson, Rust, Scott, J.M., Shannon and Watts; Senators: Colgan, Ticer and Whipple

WHEREAS, 2006 marks another major milestone for Northern Virginia’s premier health care organization, Inova Health System, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year; and

WHEREAS, Inova Health System has grown to be Northern Virginia’s leading not-for-profit medical provider, serving more than one million people annually in the Washington, D.C., area; and

WHEREAS, in 1956 a group of Fairfax County citizens, long-concerned about the need for hospital facilities in Fairfax County, met at the home of Grace Lucas to begin planning a community hospital; as a result, the Fairfax Hospital Association was incorporated to build a not-for-profit hospital, and five years later  in 1961 Fairfax Hospital opened its doors; and

WHEREAS, to meet the needs of Northern Virginia’s rapidly growing population in western Fairfax and eastern Loudoun counties, two more hospitals later joined the Fairfax Hospital Association—Mount Vernon Hospital, which opened in 1976, and Fair Oaks Hospital, which opened in 1987; and

WHEREAS, Inova Home Health, formerly the Visiting Nurse Service of Fairfax, was established in 1986, and in 1987 two long-term care centers, Commonwealth Care Center in Fairfax and Cameron Glen Care Center in Reston, opened; and

WHEREAS, HIV Services, now called the Inova Juniper Program, was established in 1988, and in 1991 the Kellar Center opened in Fairfax, the first comprehensive behavioral health facility in the area to offer outpatient treatment to children, adolescents, and their families; and

WHEREAS, other significant milestones include Inova Fairfax Hospital heart surgeons performing their 100th heart transplant in 1994 and Inova collaboration with various community groups and local schools to initiate broad community health initiatives, such as the Partnership for Healthier Kids, which was designated a national model by the United States Department of Health and Human Services in 2000; and

WHEREAS, in 1997 Alexandria Hospital joined Inova Health System and "Inova" was added to all of the health systems' acclaimed and diverse facilities; and

WHEREAS, between 1998 and 2004, Inova Health System formed an affiliation with Sunrise Assisted Living to offer increased assisted living services to the aging population, established Inova HealthPlex in the Franconia-Springfield community to bring state-of-the-art health care and services to the region, and opened the Inova Heart and Vascular Institute, the region’s first dedicated cardiac facility on the Inova Fairfax Hospital campus; and

WHEREAS, in early 2005, Inova merged with Loudoun Healthcare, Inc., to bring a full range of health care services to the population of Loudoun County; and

WHEREAS, over the years, Inova Health System has never lost sight of its community-oriented, not-for-profit mission, first envisioned by a group of concerned citizens 50 years ago: to provide excellence in patient care, education, and research to benefit all of the citizens of Fairfax County; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend and congratulate Inova Health System on the occasion of its 50th anniversary; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Inova Health System as an expression of the General Assembly's gratitude for its outstanding service and dedication to the citizens of Fairfax County.