Our History
Founded in 1950, Steele Memorial Medical Center (SMMC), formerly known as Steele Memorial Hospital, is a Medicare-Certified, county-owned, 18-bed Critical Access Hospital and associated Rural Health Clinic. Located at 203 South Daisy Street in Salmon, Idaho, SMMC is a comprehensive healthcare system serving people in Lemhi and Custer counties and surrounding areas.
The original hospital facility was built through funds generously provided by the residents of Lemhi County, donations and a large contribution made by Eleanor and Emmett Reese in the memory of Eleanor's father, Charles Steele.
The original hospital was a state-of-the art building and one of the most well equipped medical facilities of its time. Throughout the years, as the world of medicine progressed and technological advancements took place, the hospital began facing new challenges. The 1970's began an era of accelerating medical advances.
As time passed, a new emphasis was placed on outpatient services, decreasing the inpatient flow for which the original Steele Memorial facility was designed. Additionally, the hospital struggled to meet healthcare facility guidelines and codes.
In November 2002, the citizens of Lemhi County passed a General Obligation Bond to help support construction of a new, replacement hospital facility. This bond, combined with a $3 million grant pledge to the Steele Memorial Foundation from the Steele-Reese Foundation made construction of a new hospital a reality.
Construction of the new hospital began in May 2003 and continued until September 2004. The new facility officially held its grand opening on October 22, 2004 in a ceremony attended by staff members, medical personnel, the Honorable Governor of Idaho, Dirk Kempthorne, community members and representatives from the medical community throughout Idaho and Montana.
The new facility accurately reflects our ever-expanding service area, including Lemhi and Custer counties and surrounding areas. Steele Memorial Medical Center is the second largest employer in Salmon, Idaho, with over 150 employees.
The Rural Health Clinic, Steele Memorial Clinic, located at 805 Main Street in Salmon, ID, provides many valuable services to the community. The Clinic's staff consists of three Family Practice/OB physicians who are partnered with two Nurse Practitioners, two Physician Assistants, one OB/GYN specialist, a Board Certified General Surgeon and a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon.
The SMMC healthcare system offers outpatient healthcare services, inpatient care, a full-service therapy department, laboratory services, medical imaging including 80 Slice CT Scanner with low dose radiation technology, ultrasound, mammography, MRI, and surgical services - including general surgery, orthopedic surgery, gynecological surgery and endoscopy procedures. Our Outpatient Specialty Clinic offers Cardiology, Dermatology, Oncology, Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology, Plastic Surgery, Psychiatry, and Urology services.