Marking a Decade of Milestones at Kearney Regional Medical Center
From startup to regional leader, KRMC stays true to founding principles while enjoying unprecedented growth.
Sponsored by: Kearney Regional Medical Center
Beginning with the premise that health care could — and should — be delivered differently, a small group of local physicians set out to create a hospital system that valued community needs over the corporate bottom line.
While spreadsheets might have highlighted cost savings in consolidating specialties in Lincoln and Omaha, the doctors believed area residents deserved access to outstanding care close to home.
To achieve that goal, physicians David Benavides, Sean Denney, Scott Smith and Merlin Wehling, John Schulte (retired), Brent Steffen, John Allen and Troy Potthoff (retired) led the charge in rallying other local providers. Ultimately, a group of nearly 40 physicians united around the vision of building a hospital dedicated to improving health through physician-guided, people-centered care.
A seemingly straightforward business plan soon became a study in perseverance in the face of a recession, state moratorium on new hospital construction and revised federal regulations that fundamentally changed hospital ownership models.
Overcoming each obstacle, Kearney Regional Medical Center celebrated its official grand opening in May 2014, ushering in a new era of care.
Ten years into the journey, KRMC has enjoyed dramatic growth. What began as a small community hospital with fewer than 50 employees has morphed into a multispecialty delivery system employing nearly 900 team members. Now part of Bryan Health, Kearney Regional serves more than 200,000 people in central and southwest Nebraska and northern Kansas.
Although much has changed over the last decade, the foundational principle that puts people and community at the center of the care equation has never wavered.
