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In 1934, Dr. William
Mowery, Sr., following in his father's footsteps, had been in
medical practice for 24 years. Dr. Mowery decided that one of the
best ways to offer specialty care was in a clinic setting. On the
6th floor of the United Life Building at 8th and Iron in Salina,
KS, he established the Mowery Clinic, and there were a total of
five physicians--all specialists. This was the first home of the
Mowery Clinic--one of the oldest multi-specialty clinics west of
the Mississippi River.
In 1939, the second
"home" of the Clinic was built at 10th and Iron, across
the street from Sacred Heart High School. Due to his untimely
death, Dr. Mowery, Sr. was never able to practice in the new
building. However, at age 15, his son already felt the desire to
carry on the family tradition. Dr. Mowery, Jr. believes his
father's goal was to create a group of compatible, well-trained
and experienced physicians in multiple specialties. Now, over 50
years later, that goal is still being achieved. Although he
probably never envisioned that the Clinic would become this large,
Dr. Mowery, Jr. says he is sure that his father would be very
pleased.
The Mowery Clinic
continued to grow. At the 10th and Iron building, there was a
basement which housed a few of the clerical support staff, the
main floor which held the majority of physicians, lab and x-ray
and upstairs there were two Pediatricians. There was no elevator,
so patients had to climb the stairs. Most of the doctors worked
without appointments. Patients had to come and wait their turn, so
many brought along knitting and crocheting to pass the time.
Radiology had only one table and the lab was not much bigger than
a janitor's closet. The Clinic was so busy that it wasn't unusual
to work past 6:00 p.m., even on Saturdays. During the mid to late
1950's the Shilling Air Base was in operation so many patients
were military families and several military wives worked at the
Clinic.
During the mid-1950's
the physicians decided the building at 10th & Iron was no
longer big enough to meet their needs. Dr. Mowery, Jr. recalls the
multiplicity of meetings required to formulate the plan and ideas
for the new building. The group decided to build on Crawford
Street. Apparently there was a lot of talk around town. People
wondered why the doctors were going to build "way out
there," for the site was nothing but a pasture: nearby Ohio
street was a dirt road. The physicians were very excited about the
building. They would come over during their lunch hours and watch
the building grow board by board. At Christmas time, 1957, the
employees were brought over for a tour and during January and
February 1958, the old Clinic was vacated and the new Clinic was
in operation. At that time, all services were on the main floor of
the new building. In the area from the current main phlebotomy
station through x-ray and from front to back, there were seven
doctors, five nurses, eight technical and support staff, plus the
lab and x-ray departments.
Within two years, the
Mowery Clinic had outgrown itself again. Around 1960, the east
Pediatric wing was added. During construction, another
Pediatrician came into the practice and was working out of the
radiology department. In 1962, a small portion of the basement
was "remodeled" to house transcription and the
switchboard. Later,
Medicare, Blue Cross and Medicaid were moved downstairs. Employees
in these areas would come in on their day off in order to paint
the walls to give themselves a nicer working environment. In 1968,
the West End was expanded to about half of its current size. Alter
completion, four more physicians joined the Clinic. By 1983, there
were 13 physicians, and the decision was made to expand further.
The West End was enlarged to its current size, and almost the
entire building was remodeled. With the addition of four new
physicians in 1992, the Clinic acquired the building owned by the
Wedel, Wedel Barker family practice and leveled it to put up a new
physician facility. The building was named Mowery
West.
Subsequently,
a southern addition to Mowery West was constructed to house the
Cancer Center and Cardiovascular Services Center on the main
floor, as well as Cardiac and Vascular laboratory services in the
basement
Today, the
Mowery Clinic, L.L.C. is the largest Clinic in Salina, as well as
the oldest. The Clinic has always been a multi-specialty group and
has had laboratory and radiology departments since its inception.
The Mowery Clinic has had many "firsts" in recent
history.
--The first
clinic in town to install an in-house main frame computer system.
--The first
to have a Gastroenterologist.
--The first
to have a Nephrologist.
--The first
to have in-house Chemotherapy.
--The first
to have Cardiologists and Cardiac Surgeon.
In addition, there are other
attributes to recognize:
--One of the most
extensive in-clinic laboratory and radiology departments in
Salina.
--The only Pulmonologist
currently in Salina.
--The Clinic currently has
26 physicians and over 145 full time, part time and PRN/Relief
employees.
The Mowery
Clinic has a long and proud history of providing the best quality
health care, technical and administrative services. As we head
into the future, we will continue to strive for the goal set by
Dr. William Mowery, Sr. and carry on the proud heritage of his
family.
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