Our History

Celebrating 95 Years of Healing

Changing the community

On June 30, 1925, John D. Archbold Memorial Hospital was officially dedicated. Archbold opened as a modern, 100-bed general hospital, treating patients that came from South Georgia and North Florida. The medical staff that was assembled for the new hospital set the stage for a long-standing tradition of excellent physicians caring for this region.

The first 3 floors of the west wing of the hospital opened in December of 1958, adding 56 beds. Improvements to surgery, delivery rooms and nursery were made during this time, while the x-ray department was expanded. A cafeteria for staff and patients, along with a pharmacy, were also completed during the expansion.

Archbold Health Services began offering home health care in 1973. In-home care was offered as an alternative to acute hospital care or extended care facility placement.

Over the years, Archbold Health Services has grown to include Hospice of Southwest Georgia, Archbold Pinetree Pharmacy and Archbold HomeCare Store.

A period of exponential growth

The 1980s was a period of growth for the health system. Grady General Hospital, Archbold Brooks, a specialty clinic in Mitchell County, Mitchell County Hospital, Mitchell Convalescent Center and Pelham Parkway Nursing Home all become part of Archbold’s network between 1985 and 1990.

Since then, additional specialty clinics have opened in Bainbridge, Cairo, Camilla and Quitman.

Archbold purchased a magnetic resonance imaging unit (MRI), the first of its kind in Georgia south of Atlanta and in North Florida.

In 1988, the Lewis Hall Singletary Oncology Center became the region’s first comprehensive cancer facility. It opened with the latest diagnostic and treatment equipment and offered a unique approach to cancer care through the combination of medical oncology, chemotherapy and radiation therapy under one roof. The center also offered ancillary services including patient education, nutrition counseling, rehabilitation and social services.

Archbold’s Outpatient Surgery Center opened in May of 1989 as an addition to the West Wing with its own entrance for patients. It was built in conjunction with the complete renovation of the hospital’s inpatient surgical department.

The 2000s

In 2002, the Archbold Ambulatory Care Center opened and provided the community with the Ambulatory Surgery Center, Imaging Center, Women’s Center, and a relocated Preadmission Testing department.

The center gave patients access to cutting-edge technology including the most powerful MRI available at that time, and the GE Lightspeed CT scanner, which produced vital diagnostic images in under a minute.

Archbold became the third hospital in Georgia to acquire the Gamma Knife in 2003. This technology allowed physicians to treat brain tumors, lesions and malformations in the brain without a scalpel or the usual risks associated with surgery.

The Lewis Hall Singletary Oncology Center moved into a newer and larger building in August of 2010. It provides patients with private, semi-private and open-area options for infusion treatments. Patients also have access to clinical trials, a patient navigator program and a scalp cooling treatment system to help chemotherapy patients retain their hair during treatments. And most recently, added a new weapon in their fight against cancer. In October of 2020, the Varian TrueBeam System, the lastest most powerful and precise cancer fighting technology available, replaced an 18-year-old Varian Accelerator making it just over a $3.4 milliion investment for Archbold.

Archbold’s North Tower – the largest single construction project in Archbold’s history – opened in May of 2012. The tower houses the Emergency Department, the surgery department and the intensive care unit.

Looking towards the future

Archbold’s culture has always been one of innovation – striving to be a place for state of the art medicine and healing for the Thomasville community.

Planning is underway for a renovation in the Loudermilk Heart and Vascular Center to provide a fifth cath lab and other expansions and improvements. This project, planned for completion in 2021, will allow physicians to treat more patients in a timely manner.

Opening in the fall of 2020, Archbold’s new Advanced Therapy and Sports Medicine clinic will open on East Pinetree Boulevard. The new building will allow staff to offer expanded physical, occupational and speech therapy services to patients, along with a sports medicine program that caters to student athletes and active community members.

On August 24, 2020 Darcy Craven was named President and CEO of Archbold Medical Center after the retirement of Perry Mustian. According to Craven, “Archbold’s legacy of innovation, clinical excellence, careful stewardship and shared core values made the opportunity to lead this organization very attractive to me. As President and CEO, it’s very important to me to continue the legacy of preserving Archbold’s position as the leading healthcare provider in the region, as well as find new opportunities to grow.”