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Motivated by unhealthy living conditions in the Doylestown area, fourteen inspirational and very determined women met on April 26, 1895 and officially founded the Village Improvement Association of Doylestown (VIA) to use “every proper means of improving and beautifying Bucks County and improving the health and welfare of the residents.” It was a time before women were considered equals or could vote. In fact, this was the first women’s organization in Bucks County. Since its inception, the VIA can be acknowledged for many notable achievements.
The Association’s dedication to improving community health began with initiatives for garbage collection, public spitting reduction, and street dust minimization. In 1916, members Sarah M. James and Martha Lorah donated the first community ambulance in memory of their father Dr. O. P. James. In 1917, the VIA began the first visiting nurse service and provided dental exams and treatment in public schools in the following year. In 1919, they rented two rooms in which Dr. Swartzlander and visiting nurse Miss Munsey could house the Visiting Nurse Service and a health clinic. In 1921, they opened a Well Baby Clinic.
The Association’s largest accomplishment is the establishment of Doylestown Hospital in 1923 that started as an eight-bed facility in a rented home on Pine and Oakland Streets in Doylestown and later in a larger building on Belmont Street. Today the Doylestown Health System on West State Street encompasses 232 beds in a state-of-the-art acute care facility with a medical staff of more than 450 physicians in over 50 medical specialties.
In addition to its main campus, the healthcare system also includes other health care sites, physician offices, Pine Run Community (1992), Pine Run Lakeview (1998), and an urgent care facility (2017). In 2018 and 2019, US News & World Report reported Doylestown Hospital in their Best Hospitals Ranking (#7 in the region, #13 in PA) and a new ranking from Newsweek for 2019 (#150 in U.S., placing Doylestown Hospital among the top 2% of all US hospitals). Medicare currently gave the hospital their highest five-star rating for overall quality.
The hospital also earned “A” grades in Patient Safety from The Leapfrog Group for the last three years. In its earliest days, VIA members fulfilled many hospital roles beyond administration, including doing laundry and food preparation. In 1986, the health system was moved to a standalone nonprofit corporation which the VIA continues to govern through majority representation on the Hospital and Foundation Boards. One VIA member also serves as Chairman of both Boards.
Over the 124 years since its inception, the VIA initiated many other projects to improve community well-being. One of the earliest efforts was to care for those in need and that effort continues with support for food, clothing, housing, and medications. The Association awards scholarships for teen academic excellence and to women in need to pursue career training. In 2000 the VIA also began awarding community-benefiting grants; the VIA also supports veterans.
In 1954, VIA member Sarah M. James donated her home to the VIA to serve as its meeting place; in 1964, an auditorium was added to accommodate its growing membership. In 1972, the James-Lorah Memorial Home was recognized on the National Register of Historic Places by the Department of the Interior. To support the hospital, the VIA held its first Bucks County Designer House & Gardens fundraiser in 1971 at Wheelbarrow Hill. With community support and member dedication for more than 40 years, this event is now the VIA’s largest annual fundraiser and the VIA has raised more than $5 million to benefit Doylestown Hospital and to fund its other Association programs.
Today, the organization is about 300 strong and envisions “a healthy and vibrant community.” Continuing the legacy of its founding members and valuing “Community Service, Compassion, and Commitment,” we have an even broader focus to “enhance the health and welfare of Central Bucks County and surrounding communities.” To Join this dynamic group of women and help to face today’s challenges visit www.via-doylestown.org.