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38 Doing Business in Connecticut | 2014 SPONSORED REPORT C hange means growth and oppor- tunity. When it comes to you and your family's health care, what will tomorrow bring? Change in the health care landscape will continue to be unpredictable. But one thing is certain, Manchester Memorial and Rockville General hospitals, affiliates of Eastern Connecticut Health Network (ECHN), have served the health care needs of families and communities east of the river for nearly 100 years. No matter what comes our way, ECHN's commitment to caring will never change. Our sole purpose is to provide quality health care services that meet the needs of the communities we serve. This is demonstrated by our investments in new technologies, our ability to recruit and retain highly trained clinicians and our vision to train the next generation of physicians, which is critical to our mission of keeping world-class quality care close to home. When the Spanish influenza struck Connecticut in 1918, many communi- ties, including Manchester and Rockville, responded by establishing temporary emergency hospitals, one at Cheney Hall in Manchester and the other at the high school in Rockville. The pandemic changed how communities wanted to receive health care. They petitioned for better access to modern health care within their communities. Through these concerted efforts, Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospitals opened their doors in the early 1920s and pro- vided care to all individuals, regardless of their ability to pay. In 1995, well ahead of its time, ECHN was formed to create a network of ser- vices that included both hospitals, a skilled nursing facility, Woodlake at Tolland and two wellness centers: Glastonbury and the Women's Center for Wellness. The network continued to grow, adding other partner- ships and joint ventures to provide specialty health care services as needed. Physicians joined ECHN to ensure the sustainability of health care in eastern Connecticut. Then as neighborhoods began to expand, so did our services within those communities. ECHN believed that having a compre- hensive network of high-quality health care services in convenient locations would provide greater access to health care and be a huge benefit to the residents who live and/or work in eastern Connecticut. We still hold that belief. We want to ensure that no matter where you enter our health system, wheth- er you've come in for urgent or emergency care, or received physician care, or you are in need of rehabilitation or home care, the care is right here to get you well and to keep you well. And when life's journey is ending, we will make sure those last mo- ments are comfortable and dignified for patients as well as their family members. Access to a Network of Care Better access means better care ECHN is a nationally recognized net- work of hospitals, outpatient service cen- ters, and hundreds of physicians, specialists and other providers. Together, ECHN invests in modern Health care is changing, but at ECHN… Caring Never Changes