Lahey's History

The Lahey Story

Lahey Hospital & Medical Center is one of the world's premier health care organizations. We've earned this standing every day, with every patient since 1923.

The Lahey Mission

At Lahey, our mission guides us toward success. We're committed to:

• Providing superior health care leading to the best possible outcome for every patient
• Exceeding our patients' high expectations for service each day
• Advancing medicine through research and the education of tomorrow's health care leaders
• Promoting health and wellness in partnership with the diverse communities we serve

Dr. Lahey's Innovative Vision

When Dr. Frank Lahey founded a group practice in Boston in 1923, his goal was to create a clinic where doctors with different specialties would work together under one roof. Dr. Lahey established the Lahey Clinic with an anesthesiologist, an operating nurse, a surgical assistant and a gastroenterologist. At the time, this approach was a revolutionary.

At first, the Lahey Clinic doctors saw only outpatients. They also traveled to New England Baptist, New England Deaconess and Peter Bent Brigham hospitals to perform surgeries and visit patients. It was grueling work, with shifts often in excess of 24 hours.

Lahey's Early Leadership

By the 1930s and 1940s the hard work had paid off: Lahey Clinic was regarded as a leader across the nation, in part due to our very high rate of surgical successes.

As the Lahey Clinic grew, we added leading-edge technology. We acquired an X-ray machine in 1925 — earlier than most hospitals. In 1969, we added a state-of-the-art heart-lung machine, which enabled surgeons to perform open-heart surgery. In 1975, we acquired a whole body ACTA-scanner, a precursor to the modern CT machine.

We also developed advanced treatments for thyroid, gastrointestinal and gall bladder disorders.

Along with innovative technology and groundbreaking medical treatments, the Lahey Clinic was a center for research and learning. We offered doctors-in-training a chance to polish their skills under the careful supervision of some of the nation's leading physicians.

Recognized Success

As our clinic outgrew its original facility and expanded into offices on Bay State Road and another location on Commonwealth Avenue, we continued to add services and departments, some led by pioneers in their fields. Our Gastroenterology and Anesthesiology Departments arose from the practices of two of the clinic's original physicians.

The Lahey Clinic moved to its current location in Burlington in 1980 and became the Lahey Clinic Medical Center. It was renamed the Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in 2012. We launched the Landsman Heart & Vascular Center there in 2010, adding services for people with cardiovascular conditions.

In 1994, the Lahey Medical Center was established in Peabody. The Lahey Medical Center North Shore facility expanded services there in 2009. And the Sophia Gordon Cancer Center opened there in 2007, with advanced treatments for cancer.

These modern facilities exemplify leading-edge health care. We are consistently recognized for quality by national publications and rating agencies. Dr. Lahey's vision of coordinated care was at first viewed with skepticism. But, he held firmly to his belief that patients received the best care and had the best health results when teams of doctors worked together to share what they knew. Every day we work together to prove him right and continue his vision.