Heber C. Austin conceived the hospital, and construction began in 1919, though completion was delayed by a depressed economy. On 22 October 1923, President Heber J. Grant of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints dedicated the hospital. The school of nursing was essential to the hospital's operation, and the third floor served as a residence for student nurses until it became necessary to build the Nurse's Home. The hospital was remembered for compassionate service to all the people of the Upper Snake River Valley regardless of race and religion. The Church divested its ownership on 1st of April 1975, but under the names Idaho Falls and Riverview, the hospital continued serving the community until December 1986.