The Millie E. Hale Hospital was a

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

that served

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

patients. It was the first hospital to serve black patients year-round. The hospital was opened by a husband and wife team, Dr.

John Henry Hale John Henry Hale (June 5, 1878 – March 27, 1944) was a prominent surgeon, professor, and philanthropist who played a prominent role in establishing the black medical community. Hailed as the "dean of American Negro surgeons," Hale conducted over ...

and Millie E. Hale in July 1916. The couple first turned their home into a hospital that would grow to house 75 patients by 1923. In addition to the hospital, there was a

community center Community centres, community centers, or community halls are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole co ...

and ladies' auxiliary that provided health services and also recreational and charity work to the black community. The hospital also provided parks for children who had no park to use in the

Jim Crow era The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...

. In 1938, the hospital closed, but some social services continued afterwards.

History

The Millie E. Hale Hospital was the first

to serve

African-Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

year-round. The hospital was opened in

in July 1916 by a husband and wife team, Dr. John Henry and Millie E. Hale. Millie Hale served as both the hospital administrator and head nurse. Her husband worked as the chief

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

. When the hospital first opened, it had 12 beds and two nurses. It was located on the second floor of the Hales' own home and eventually, the hospital took over the entire home. It also included a community center. By 1923, the hospital had 23 beds. Also by 1923, the hospital had seen around 7,000 patients and helped feed and provide clothing for many of these. Twenty-six nurses were employed at the hospital and the mortality rate for surgeries performed there was low. Eventually, the hospital had 75 beds and also included rooms dedicated to specializations such as a surgery room and a

maternity ward Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births global ...

. The

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

"fully recognized" the hospital. The hospital also helped train nurses from

Meharry Medical College Meharry Medical College is a private historically black medical school affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1876 as the Medical Department of Central Tennessee College, it was the first me ...

, giving them practical experience. The hospital's community center, which was also once a house owned by the Hales, included a free clinic and

dispensary A dispensary is an office in a school, hospital, industrial plant, or other organization that dispenses medications, medical supplies, and in some cases even medical and dental treatment. In a traditional dispensary set-up, a pharmacist dispen ...

. The center also provided classes related to healthcare and childcare. In addition to providing education and practical needs, the community center screened movies and held concerts. The ladies' auxiliary of the hospital helped provide food, clothing and companionship to the poor and the sick in the city. The auxiliary helped maintain the many social service programs provided by the hospital. The auxiliary also helped find

foster homes Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home (residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family mem ...

for children. They also provided job-training programs for young women and assistance to women who were facing financial hardship. Because there were no parks that black people could use in Nashville during the

, Millie Hale purchased 4 plots of land that were turned into

playgrounds A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people w ...

and recreational space. Hale staffed the parks with a director and nurse. Boys' and girls' clubs were organized. The hospital closed in 1938 when Dr. John Henry Hale was appointed the chief of surgery at Meharry Medical College. Millie E. Hale had died in 1930. While the hospital closed, the social services the hospital had provided continued to serve the community after 1938.

References

{{Authority control 1916 establishments in Tennessee 1938 disestablishments in Tennessee African-American organizations Hospitals in Tennessee Hospitals established in 1916 Defunct hospitals in Tennessee Historically black hospitals in the United States