Community Advocate Corenza Townsend Is Why Louisville’s Majority-Black West End Now Has Its First Hospital In Over 150 Years

Chief Administrative Officer Corenza Townsend has opened a hospital in Louisville, KY.

According to CBS News’ “Eye On America,” the idea was first planted eight years ago when Townsend was working as a nurse manager at a hospital in the Norton Healthcare system. She boldly pitched the concept of opening a hospital in Louisville’s majority-Black West End neighborhood to Norton Healthcare’s CEO.

“We had this plan,” Townsend explained, according to the outlet. “It wasn’t in writing yet. We happened to see Russ Cox, our CEO, walking to the bathroom. So we stalked him outside the bathroom… Nobody thought he would actually say yes. He said, yes. He just listened to us and he said, ‘Let’s do it. What do you need?'”

In late 2024, the Norton West Louisville Hospital reached the finish line after a two-year-long process. Its opening is especially timely, as the area had been without a hospital for over 150 years.

“The life expectancy in West Louisville is about 12-and-a-half to 15 years different here than anywhere else in the city,” Townsend expressed. “That alone gives you reason enough to build a hospital in West Louisville.”

According to its website, the hospital offers a variety of services, including behavioral health, primary care, pulmonary care, women’s care, and treatment for infectious diseases. It also offers patients transportation and language and translation services, as well as provides financial assistance for “hospital-based emergency” or “other medically necessary care” for those who qualify and cannot afford payment.

“We know the lack of transportation, lack of general education around health care, and then just bias in how people are treated in the health care system,” Townsend said, according to CBS News. “Our people in West Louisville are not getting the help that they needed.”

Beyond providing empathetic patient care, The Norton West Louisville Hospital includes a bistro, valet parking, and a food bank in partnership with Dare to Care available to the general public. This further offers a comfortable space for those wary of doctors and hospitals, she says.

“The people we were serving, we asked them what they wanted and what they needed. They told us, and we created it,” Townsend expressed.

In recognition of her efforts, it was recently announced that the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville spotlighted Townsend in its “Daughters of Greatness” series.