UK hospital, celebrating 60th anniversary of its opening, recalls the governor for whom it was named: A.B. 'Happy' Chandler

A.B. Chandler breaks ground for the hospital. (UK photo)

As the University of Kentucky celebrates the 60th anniversary of the opening of its medical center, it asked the grandson of the governor who campaigned for it, and for whom it is named, to reflect on what it means to the state.

Ben Chandler, who had his own political career and now runs the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said in a video interview with UK that A.B. "Happy" Chandler "felt like an institution was needed, which not only educated health care providers who would then fan out across the eastern part of the state, but also a place where people from Eastern Kentucky could come to get health care. . . . Eastern Kentucky had a high rate of infant mortality, they had several counties that had no physician at all, and almost no health care whatsoever."

The Albert B. Chandler Hospital has done "incalculable" good, Chandler said. "There's just no way you can describe it. Not only do you have the medical benefits that accrue as a result of the establishment of this institution, but the economic advantages that are connected with it. UK HealthCare is one of the largest employers in Lexington and Central Kentucky. And if you can think about the importance of this from an economic standpoint for the city of Lexington, it really just boggles the mind. There are very few things that have happened economically in Lexington that have been as important as the establishment of this medical facility."

Albert Benjamin Chandler III said his grandfather "would be really astonished at the growth and at the stewardship that has taken place throughout these years. He would be very, very proud of the people who were instrumental in building this institution. And he would just be incredibly proud of their stewardship of it over the years, and probably pretty surprised at just how dramatic its effect has been."