St Bernard's Hospital is the only public hospital and

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

in the

British overseas territory The British Overseas Territories (BOTs) or alternatively referred to as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are the fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom that, ...

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

History

Juan Mateos

In 1567, during Gibraltar's Spanish period, a retired

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

keeper by the name of Juan Mateos converted his house into a 20-bed hospital. He continued to nurse locals and sailors from this location for over 20 years before running into debt, as a result of which he transferred the hospital to the " Orden de San Juan de Dios" (). He joined the order himself until his death in 1594, when he was mourned by all the locals. By 1691, the hospital became known as the "Hospital de San Juan de Dios" (), an isolation hospital.

Military hospital

The existing Spanish hospital in Gibraltar was taken over by the British authorities as a

military hospital A military hospital is a hospital owned or operated by a military. They are often reserved for the use of military personnel and their dependents, but in some countries are made available to civilians as well. They may or may not be located on a m ...

after the Anglo-Dutch capture of Gibraltar in August 1704 and repaired and refurbished by the Lieutenant Governor Col. Richard Kane. It was initially a naval hospital, but was used during the 1727 siege by the Army, and was returned to the Navy in 1728. With the building of the Naval Hospital in 1746, it became the Garrison Hospital, but by 1756 it was being used as a Barracks, later known as the Blue Barracks, where the Company of Military Artificers (later the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

) was formed in 1776.

The New Civil Hospital

Much of the building fell into ruins after it was severely damaged by Franco-

bombardment during the

Great Siege of Gibraltar The Great Siege of Gibraltar was an unsuccessful attempt by Enlightenment in Spain, Spain and Kingdom of France, France to capture Gibraltar from the Kingdom of Great Britain, British during the American Revolutionary War. It was the largest ba ...

, and it was not until 1815 that it was extensively rebuilt under the auspices of the then

Governor of Gibraltar The governor of Gibraltar is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territories, British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The role of ...

Sir George Don, as a civil hospital for the local population. It served as a war hospital for injured soldiers in the Mediterranean, and many received aid here in the 1830s.

The Colonial Hospital

It was rebuilt in 1882, and the elegant façade can still be seen, partly obscured by further extensions and additions over the years including the ''King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

Wing'' in front of the hospital in the 1950s and the ''Mackintosh Wing'' in the 1970s. In 2005 St Bernard's Hospital moved to its new home in Europort, and over four centuries of history came to an end.

New St Bernard's

The new St Bernard's Hospital, constructed by converting an existing office block at Europort (three times the size of the old hospital), represented a £60,000,000 plus investment in health for current and future generations. Most of the other improvements in secondary care have been made possible by this modern medical facility which contains nearly £6 million of new medical equipment. Work on the project commenced on 8 July 2002 involving radically altering the inner areas of the existing Buildings 1–4, to adapt them to the needs of a modern hospital. The hospital is operated by the Gibraltar Health Authority, a department of the

Government of Gibraltar His Majesty's Government of Gibraltar is the democratically elected government of the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. The head of state is King Charles III who is represented by the Governor. Elections in Gibraltar are held every four ...

with the purpose of providing health care to the residents of Gibraltar. The hospital is designed for some 210 beds covering ortho trauma,

maternity A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestatio ...

surgical Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery ...

medical Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

and paediatric wards, two main

operating theatre An operating theater (also known as an Operating Room (OR), operating suite, operation suite, or Operation Theatre (OT)) is a facility within a hospital where surgical operations are carried out in an aseptic environment. Historically, the ter ...

s and an emergency back up theatre, a

hydrotherapy Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and Physical therapy, physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and ...

pool Pool may refer to: Bodies of water * Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming * Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings * Tide pool, a roc ...

with a full rehabilitation clinic, day surgery unit and cardiac rehabilitation,

accident and emergency department An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pat ...

with provision for major and minor incidents and ophthalmic clinics. There is a modern

mortuary A morgue or mortuary (in a hospital or elsewhere) is a place used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification (ID), removal for autopsy, respectful burial, cremation or other methods of disposal. In modern times, corpses have cus ...

with much-improved waiting and viewing facilities adjacent to a new

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

. The present School of Health Studies has relocated from Bleak House at Europa Point to a dedicated area in Block 3 and the office of the Chief Executive and the administrative staff has moved from Johnstone's Passage to Block 1.

Gallery

File:Sister Constance Worthington.jpg, Sister Constance Worthington of the old Colonial Hospital (1891). File:Gibraltar Colonial Hospital ward.jpg, A typical ward at the old Colonial Hospital (20th century). File:King George V entering the Colonial Hospital in Gibraltar, 1935.jpg, King George entering the Colonial Hospital in Gibraltar during his royal visit (1935). File:St_Bernard's_Hospital.jpg, The façade of the new St Bernard's Hospital at Europort (2008).

References

External links

Pictures of the old hospital

Gibraltar Health Authority
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Bernards Hospital Hospitals in Gibraltar Hospital buildings completed in 1815 Hospital buildings completed in 1882 1567 establishments in Spain Hospitals established in the 16th century 1500s establishments in Gibraltar 2004 establishments in Gibraltar 2004 disestablishments in Gibraltar