Sioux Empire Medical Museum reopens
Oct. 7, 2022
Contact:
Vanessa Vondra
Sanford Health Media Relations
605-366-2432 / vanessa.vondra@sanfordhealth.org
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Today, Sanford Health reopened the newly renovated Sioux Empire Medical Museum and dedicated it to the Sioux Valley Hospital School of Nursing Alumni Association. The Sioux Empire Medical Museum opened in 1975 thanks to the efforts of countless alumni. It was South Dakota’s first medical museum and remains the state’s only to this day. It closed temporarily in recent years for the remodel.
Now, visitors will be taken through the history of nursing through video, photos, historical medical equipment, uniforms, and panels of information. One of the highlights of the museum is an Iron Lung. When polio first hit the region in the 1940s, the Iron Lung was used to treat patients who contracted the disease. These machines were used to help patients breathe artificially until they could breathe on their own again, typically after a few weeks.
“Nurses touch almost all of us at some point in our lives. The Sioux Empire Medical Museum is an amazing way to honor the nurses who came before us and paved the way for how we care for patients today,” said Kelly Hefti, vice president of nursing and clinical services at Sanford Health in Sioux Falls. “As we reflect on how the profession of nursing has evolved through the years, I want to thank the Sioux Valley Hospital School of Nursing Alumni Association for their efforts in preserving and remembering this history.”
The Sioux Empire Medical Museum is located on the lower level of the Sanford USD Medical Center. It is free and open for people to visit from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday starting October 10. It will be closed on holidays throughout the year.
About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization serves more than one million patients and 220,000 health plan members across 250,000 square miles. The integrated health system has 47 medical centers, 2,800 Sanford
physicians and advanced practice providers, 170 clinical investigators and research scientists, more than 200 Good Samaritan Society senior care locations and world clinics in 8 countries around the globe. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.
