When you mention Rochester to most folks, they think Rochester, NY. It's the home of Wegmans flagship store, Eastman Kodak Museum, and so much more. It wasn't until I moved down to Rochester, MN that I got to know more about this city. During this period, the two biggest employers were Mayo Clinic and IBM. The former is still this city's largest employer to date. I found it weird at the time, with a population of just over 80,000, that Rochester was deemed a city with a fairly small airport. Well, I figured out why Rochester International Airport (RST) was deemed an international one. You had, and probably still do to this day, folks flying in for medical appointments and stay at or near Mayo Clinic for them. I could hear large planes fly in, including that of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush. It was both interesting and exciting as a Canadian working stateside. It was cool to be living in a city with Mayo Clinic ranked the number one hospital in the U.S. When I was employed at IBM, I had the option of getting health care from one of two systems. I oddly don't remember the second one, but it was cool opting for health care at Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit American academic medical centre that integrates health care, education, and research. Its headquarters location is in downtown Rochester, which is the original and largest campus. It also has campuses in Phoenix, AZ; Jacksonville, FL; and London in the United Kingdom. William Worrall Mayo was the founder of Mayo Clinic where his practice was. He had two sons who also followed in his steps and practised medicine in Rochester. The Mayo Clinic occupies a rather large chunk of the downtown area. It has over thirty buildings by now, which includes the St. Marys Campus. Some key buildings are the following: - Mayo Building and Gonda Building are where the majority of doctors' offices and examinations rooms are, and some testing areas. - Mayo Clinic Hospital, Methodist Campus, is one of two Mayo Clinic hospitals in Rochester. - Mayo Clinic Hospital, Saint Marys Campus, is the second hospital on the Rochester campus. - Mayo Eugenio Litta Children's Hospital is the main pediatric care facility in Rochester. The hospital serves infants, children, and teenagers with the highest quality of medical care. When I lived in Rochester, my late friend stayed at Mayo for a procedure. My officemate and I visited her after work. As Canadians, we were mesmerized at how huge and organized Mayo was back then. We found our friend and spent some time visiting her before we left her to rest up. My late friend was diagnosed with Leukemia a few years ago and was admitted to Mayo before she went with hospice care. There was peace of mind knowing that her doctors and nurses did everything that they could for her. At her funeral, staff at Mayo had a recording of her heartbeat and it was integrated into a song that was played during the service. It was moving and touching that this hospital would share a bit of her with all of us. I only used this system a handful of times during my stay in Rochester. My doctor was professional and great. I did physiotherapy, which helped get my mobility back. There are many hotel options for folks coming down here if they do have medical appointments. There are also many eateries and shopping nearby. Parking does require that you shell out. If you park a bit further, you can get cheaper parking. It's an impressive campus, both as a visitor and a patient. The fact that it's in Rochester is still cool to me to this day. (27) read more

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I am very pleased with Mayo Clinic Hospital. I had 2 major surgeries in 4 months. Both were 100% successful. Every one of the staff members from the surgeon to the custodian was great. I now have a better understanding of why they are the #1 hospital in the world. read more