The Western Infirmary was a

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

situated in the West End of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

, Scotland, that was managed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. It was opened in 1874 and closed in 2015.

History

After the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

moved from the city centre to the West End in the 1870s, distancing itself from the

Royal Infirmary Royal Infirmary may refer to a number of hospitals in the United Kingdom: *England **Blackburn Royal Infirmary **Bradford Royal Infirmary **Bolton Royal Infirmary **Bristol Royal Infirmary **Chester Royal Infirmary **Derbyshire Royal Infirmary ** ...

, a new teaching

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 emergen ...

was commissioned for the new university site and opened in 1874. The Western Infirmary opened as a voluntary hospital relying upon donations and

bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the act ...

s from members of the public. By 1890 there had already been 877 operations performed in the hospital. Although the hospital initially had only 150 beds, by 1911 this had increased to over six hundred. In 1936 the decision was taken to establish a medical department. In 1930 a radiology department opened and, in 1936, a new ophthalmology department was officially opened, named the Tennent Memorial, with an entrance on Church Street. In 1938 the research capacity increased with the opening of the Gardiner Institute of Medicine. Taking its name from the family that had gifted almost £25,000 towards its foundation the institute worked in conjunction with the University of Glasgow. In 1948 with the introduction of the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

the Western Infirmary came under the management of the Glasgow Western Hospitals Board of Management. A £3.5million two-phase rebuilding programme was authorised by the Glasgow Corporation in June 1962. The 256–bed Phase 1 block was completed in 1974. After the completion of the nearby

Gartnavel General Hospital Gartnavel General Hospital is a teaching hospital in the West End of Glasgow, Scotland. The hospital is located next to the Great Western Road, between Hyndland, Anniesland and Kelvindale. Hyndland railway station is adjacent to the hospital. ...

in 1972, Phase 2 was indefinitely postponed in 1975. In 2002, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde announced the results of a three-year consultation, the Greater Glasgow's Acute Services Review, wherein they outlined a £700 million

modernisation Modernization theory is used to explain the process of modernization within societies. The "classical" theories of modernization of the 1950s and 1960s drew on sociological analyses of Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and a partial reading of Max Weber, ...

plan for Glasgow's hospitals. As part of the plan, some services would be transferred to expanded facilities at

but most of them would be transferred to new facilities at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital site. By 2010 the Western Infirmary had only 493 inpatient beds. In autumn 2015, the Western Infirmary closed with the exception of the minor injuries unit. At the end of 2015 the Minor Injuries Unit moved a short distance to the

Yorkhill Hospital The West Glasgow Ambulatory Care Hospital is a healthcare facility in Yorkhill, Glasgow. The new ambulatory care facility was created in December 2015 to house the remaining outpatient services and the minor injury unit previously housed at the ...

site and the Western Infirmary closed completely on 6 December 2015. In accordance with a commitment given by the hospital to the University in 1878 that the site would be offered back to the University if it was no longer required for healthcare, the University exercised its right to acquire the site and plans to redevelop it were approved in February 2017.

Services

There was a

Maggie's centre Maggie's centres are a network of drop-in centres across the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, which aim to help anyone who has been affected by cancer. They are not intended as a replacement for conventional cancer therapy, but as a caring enviro ...

at the hospital to help cancer patients, as well as the Glasgow Clinical Research Facility.

References

External links

Celebrating a Proud History: The Western Infirmary 1874−2015
on the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde website {{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1874 Hospital buildings completed in 1974 Defunct hospitals in Scotland Hospitals in Glasgow Teaching hospitals in Scotland Voluntary hospitals 2015 disestablishments in Scotland Partick