The Early History of Mease Hospitals
Mease Countryside Hospital
Morton Plant and Mease have always engaged in competition. In the late 1970's and early 1980's the friendly competition soared as both hospitals mulled the possibilities of providing health care to the rapidly growing area of northern Pinellas County. Some Morton Plant leaders had advocated establishing a Morton Plant presence in the northern part of the county for years, others wanted to focus expansion efforts only in Clearwater.
By 1978 Mease hospital leadership believed that Countryside was an ideal area for a satellite clinic therefore, they opened one on 22 acres of land on McMullen Booth Road. Two years later its size was doubled by the addition of a second floor.
In 1981 the Mease board decided to apply for a certificate of need to build a 100 bed hospital at the clinic site. Morton Plant and other hospitals threw their hats in the ring and competition heated up to be the hospital to snag community support and more importantly the state's permission to build a new facility in Countryside. In 1982 the Morton Plant supporters who wanted to remain only in Clearwater won the battle as the state granted permission to Mease to proceed in pursuing the project. Ground was broken in 1982 and the new Mease Countryside Hospital was completed and opened in 1986.
Thanks to the generosity of Roy and Joni Shaffer's committment of $2 million dollars to the Mease Countryside expansion, the Shaffer Tower opened in April, 2005 and is home to a state of the art emergency room, a secure pediatric wing, more patient rooms and family centered a maternity center.
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