The Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center was originally created as Camp Gordon Station Hospital in 1941 and within a year expanded to comprise some 1,600 beds and by 1944 was providing medical services for nine dispensaries at the post as well as dental activities. Closed in 1946, the facility was reopened in 1976 and dedicated in honor of Eisenhower a year before it began accepting patients, a fitting selection given that Eisenhower gave his farewell address to the Army at Fort Gordon in 1961; he also received treatment for a heart attack there in 1965 before being transferred to Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C. In October 2023, Fort Gordon itself was redesignated as Fort Eisenhower per the recommendation of the Commission on the Naming of Items of the Department of Defense that Commemorate the Confederate States of America or Any Person Who Served Voluntarily with the Confederate States of America.
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Maroon and white, the branch colors of the Army Medical Department, are featured prominently in the Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI), more commonly known as a unit crest. The red cross in the insignia’s center is a universal symbol denoting aid and assistance; the two serpents bookending the cross are associated with the caduceus used as the branch insignia of the Army Medical Corps (a staff with a single serpent, the Rod of Asclepius, is also associated with medical care).
The pillars and arch behind the cross and serpents is taken from the Georgia State Seal and are also found on the unit crest of
Dental Activity, Fort Gordon. “Dignity Dedication Honor” is the Center’s motto.
This Distinctive Unit Insignia was originally approved for the U.S. Army Hospital, Fort Gordon on 19 November 1970. It was subsequently redesignated for the U.S. Army Medical Center, Fort Gordon on 22 August 1973 but was redesignated to its current role and title on 3 June 1975.
Guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.