University of Michigan Health-West, formerly known as Metro Health – University of Michigan Health, is a nonprofit health system affiliated with University of Michigan Health, with primary and specialty care services at 30 locations in West Michigan. The organization’s 208-bed main hospital anchors Metro Health Village in Wyoming, Michigan, and serves more than 250,000 patients annually. It is one of the only hospitals in the area that is not located in or near the Grand Rapids Medical Mile. History Founding In the 1940s, Louis M. Monger, an osteopathic physician who had been working at the Detroit Osteopathic Hospital, sought to introduce osteopathic care to the residents of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Monger and a group of osteopathic physicians decided to set aside their personal resources to create a hospital dedicated to holistic care. It was decided to purchase the previous home of the bishop serving for the Diocese of Grand Rapids at 1225 Lake Drive in Grand Rapids, MI and nearly $50,000 was raised to equip the hospital. After some delays due to rationing during World War II, Grand Rapids Osteopathic Hospital opened in December 1942 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Andrew Taylor Still's creation of osteopathic education. The hospital's first patient was Louisa Porcelli, wife of the hospital's Secretary-Treasurer James V. Porcelli, DO, who gave birth to their first child in the nearly finished hospital. Louisa had to be carried up the stairs and placed in the only functioning room in the hospital. Metropolitan Hospital In 1957, the Grand Rapids Osteopathic Hospital moved to 1919 Boston SE Grand Rapids, MI. The hospital was originally equipped with only 28 beds. By the late 1970s, the hospital had grown to include over 200 beds. After decades of growth, the hospital was renamed Metropolitan Hospital so it could represent the multiple specialties now working with patients. By the 1990s, Metropolitan Hospital was seeking to expand. On December 2, 1996, the hospital's president and CEO Michael Faas unveiled a new organization called Metro Health, with the hospital partnering with over 130 physicians to create clinics throughout western Michigan. In May 1999, a $40 million proposal to expand that included the purchase and destruction of 55 homes in the area was opposed by residents in the area. By October 2000, Spectrum Health was expanding throughout the area while the hospital still lacked neighborhood support, resulting in a decision to construct a new facility elsewhere.