TidalHealth Nanticoke celebrates 75th anniversary of hospital dedication

On Armistice Day in 1951, the Seaford community gathered as Nanticoke Memorial Hospital was dedicated.

The hospital was built as a living memorial to western Sussex County veterans, and the dedication was held Nov. 11, 1951 — a day that’s now known as Veterans Day. The hospital opened Jan. 28, 1952.

“This dedication ceremony will mark the culmination of over six years of effort on the part of those individuals who foresaw the need for a community hospital and did something about it,” read an article featured in a special section of The Leader and The Seaford News two days before the dedication.

Seventy-five years later, the hardworking team at TidalHealth Nanticoke is keeping the original vision alive and continues to serve the community, earning recognition along the way.  

Over the years, the hospital grew, with the addition of the Anna M. Brown Wing in 1957 and the J. Leland Fox Wing in 1968. The Richard Tobin Coronary/Intensive Care Unit was added in 1975, and a three-story patient tower was added in 1983, with two additional floors added in 1989.

The hospital was renamed to TidalHealth Nanticoke in 2020 when it joined with then-Peninsula Regional Medical Center. The organizations united to form TidalHealth.  

Back in 1951, the hospital was described as a “thoroughly modern and up-to-date hospital” in a newspaper article — and the founders likely couldn’t even imagine what kinds of medical advancements would be made over the next three-quarters of a century. TidalHealth Nanticoke now offers many more specialties, and physicians perform advanced procedures, such as several kinds of robotic-assisted surgery.

A couple major robotic surgery milestones were reached in 2026: William Doran, DO, FAAOS, completed his 2,000th Mako robotic-assisted hip and knee surgery, and Jarrod Buzalewski, DO, performed his 1,000th da Vinci robotic surgery.

The next generation of physicians is also learning at TidalHealth Nanticoke as part of the growing TidalHealth Graduate Medical Education program. Dr. Buzalewski is the site director for the TidalHealth General Surgery Residency at TidalHealth Nanticoke, mentoring students in general surgery and advanced robotic techniques.

While much has changed, some things have stayed the same — including the commitment of the team to care for the greater Seaford community.

“Through generations of caregivers and team members, it has always been the people behind the care who make this hospital special,” said TidalHealth Nanticoke President Penny Short, MSM, BSN, RN.

While it’s been too long for any of the original Nanticoke Memorial Hospital team members to still work for the organization, there are numerous team members who have devoted decades of service, including three who reached 45 years of service during fiscal year 2026.

Some team members, like Amy Mitchell, who is a pharmacy buyer at TidalHealth Nanticoke, were born at the place they now work. She’s been with the organization for 37 years and has seen advancements in both processes and the types of specialties offered at the hospital. 
“We’ve come a long way from paper to computer to more automated processes,” she said.

Sabrina Horsey, a surgical tech who works in the outpatient treatment center, was also born at what is now TidalHealth Nanticoke. She reached 30 years and seven months with the organization the week of the dedication’s anniversary.

“We might be a small hospital, but we are powerful,” she said. “I’ll put TidalHealth Nanticoke up against any other hospital in the state of Delaware.”