About Us
About Rapides Regional Medical Center
Our hospital has served our community for over a century, and our medical professionals are dedicated to providing high-quality, efficient and compassionate healthcare services to you and your family.
Helpful resources
Message from the CEO
It is an honor to serve as the chief executive officer (CEO) of a facility that has provided exceptional and compassionate care to Central Louisiana for more than 120 years.
We care for your family, neighbors, coworkers and loved ones as we would care for our own. And that makes you one of us.
Rapides Regional Medical Center began in 1903 as a small, two-story wooden building, with 20 beds and six physicians. Today, we’ve grown to a 346-bed, advanced medical facility with more than 450 physicians and 1,200 employees. We offer the area’s only trauma center and pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), the largest neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in the region, and maintain the area’s most comprehensive cardiac program.
As we look to the future, our hospital family takes pride in providing high-quality, efficient and compassionate care in this rapidly advancing era of modern medicine. Healthcare looks much different today than it did in 1903, but our mission and calling remain the same.
Vernon Jones II
CEO
Rapides Regional Medical Center statistics
1,500
Employees
450
Physicians
346
Licensed beds
Our leadership
Newsroom
Contact us
The region's preferred healthcare hub
Our hospital is easily accessible from anywhere in Central Louisiana. When you need medical attention, we are here to meet your personalized health needs.
Comprehensive healthcare services
Because our staff includes physicians across more than 30 medical specialties, we are able to offer you and your family a wide array of services, including:
- Cancer care
- Cardiac rehabilitation
- General medicine
- Emergency services, including intensive care
- Minimally invasive surgery
- Neurological care, including neurosurgery
- Obstetrics and gynecology
- Orthopedic care
- Outpatient care
- Physical therapy
- Respiratory therapy
- Surgical care
- Telemetry care
Affiliation with HP Long
Our hospital is associated with HP Long, which delivers accessible healthcare to those in the region who are uninsured or on Medicaid.
Those in need can be seen by providers for both general and specialized health needs. Please note that HP Long is not an emergency room (ER). In an emergency, you should call 911 or go directly to the nearest ER.
Designated meditative space
Our cancer center is home to a heart space-designed spiritual labyrinth called The Labyrinth. Patterned after the Chartres Cathedral in France, it is just the second constructed in a Louisiana hospital.
The Labyrinth is located down the street from our main hospital campus, at 605 Medical Center Drive. The goal of the space is to provide a place of spiritual refuge for those undergoing cancer treatment, and is open from dawn to dusk for you, your family members and the greater community.
History of our hospital
Rapides Regional Medical Center was founded in 1903 at the corner of Second Street and Lee Street in Alexandria, Louisiana. Today, it represents a proud heritage of compassionate healthcare services coupled with the most advanced technology.
Our hospital, which is located downtown and easily accessible from Interstate 49, is fully accredited by The Joint Commission. In addition to Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare programs, we participate in a number of commercial insurance and managed care initiatives.
Mission, vision and values
Our vision is to be a healthcare leader for Central Louisiana. Through the efforts of our employees and physicians, we work to be able to offer accessible, high-quality medical services that improve lives.
We hold intentional values, which collectively spell out I-C-A-R-E. These include:
- Integrity
- Compassion
- Always
- Respect
- Excellence
Our women's and children's hospital
Rapides Women’s and Children’s Hospital provides quality care for your entire family, including specialized services designed to fit into busy lifestyles. Our women’s care services include:
- Bone density testing
- Breast self-exam education
- Cosmetic surgery
- Gynecology
- Laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgery
- Mammography
- Obstetrics
- Osteoporosis prevention and education
Our facility is connected to the Medical Pavilion, a four-story physician office building. This facility houses many of our obstetricians and gynecologists (OB/GYNs), cosmetic surgeons and pediatric specialists, as well as the Rapides Specialty Clinic.
The hospital offers multiple labor and delivery and recovery suites able to accommodate natural births or those involving anesthesia and a dedicated postpartum unit. Five on-site surgery suites are also dedicated to inpatient gynecological procedures, day surgery and cosmetic surgery.
Pediatric services at RW&CH include:
- Central Louisiana’s largest NICU, a 32-bed facility staffed with neonatologists and nurses specially trained in the care of sick or premature infants
- One of the region's only PICUs, staffed by experienced pediatric intensivists
- Pediatric inpatient unit
- Well-baby nursery
Resources for you
We want you to be as informed as possible about your care and the services we provide. For your convenience, we have included some additional resources, including: