In 1871, Dr. Abraham Groves began his medical practice in Fergus, Ontario. Back then, the closest hospital was in Toronto. There was not one trained nurse in all of Canada and no skilled assistants of any kind.
Dr. Groves performed his early surgical work under very primitive conditions. The operating room was generally his patient’s kitchen; milk pans were used as catch basins, sea-sponges for wiping and horse hair (generally taken directly from Dr. Groves’ horse) for stitching up surgical wounds. Chloroform was the only anesthetic and it was typically administered from a bottle with a split cork onto a towel that was then inhaled by the patient. If a patient needed emergency surgery at night, a coal-oil lamp supplied the light, because electricity had not yet been invented.
Little to nothing was known back then about bacteria; rubber gloves, sterilized gauze or absorbent cotton seemed like elements of a Jules Verne novel. However, Dr. Groves ignored the skepticism of all of his medical peers. He was a trailblazer – insisting on sterilizing all of his surgical instruments long before it became standard practice in hospitals.
Abraham Groves a truly great name in Canadian Medicine … first and foremost – A small town country doctor … his Greatest Legacy – Groves Memorial Community Hospital.”
– History of Canadian Physicians
Dr. Groves performed the world’s first appendectomy on May 10, 1883 in a farmhouse in Fergus. He also pioneered a new model in the delivery of rural healthcare and was responsible for building the first community hospital in our town’s history – the front doors of Royal Alexandra Hospital opened in 1902.
In 1932, after 60 years of service, Dr. Groves donated his hospital to the Town of Fergus. The Royal Alexandra served our community for 53 years before a major new hospital was built in 1955. The new hospital was respectfully renamed the Groves Memorial Community Hospital in honor of this medical and surgical innovator.
Dr. Abraham Groves left a legacy of commitment and care when he donated the hospital to the Town of Fergus – the community he dedicated his life to serve. He knew health care was not only an immediate priority but one that would endure for generations. Seven decades later, his gift continues to serve our community and inspire the next generation of generosity.
Excerpt from ‘Because of You’ – Printed 2014 for the Groves Memorial Community Hospital Foundation
