Women's College Hospital
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Women's College Hospital is a teaching
hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...
in
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, Canada. It is located in downtown Toronto at the north end of Hospital Row, a section of University Avenue where several major hospitals are located. It currently functions as an independent
ambulatory care Ambulatory care or outpatient care is Health care, medical care provided on an outpatient basis, including diagnosis, observation, consultation, treatment, intervention, and rehabilitation services. This care can include advanced medical technolog ...
hospital. Women's College Hospital maintains a focus on women's health,
research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...
in women's health, and
ambulatory care Ambulatory care or outpatient care is Health care, medical care provided on an outpatient basis, including diagnosis, observation, consultation, treatment, intervention, and rehabilitation services. This care can include advanced medical technolog ...
, although patients of all genders can access most services offered by the hospital. It was recognized as the only ''collaborating centre'' in women's health the Western Hemisphere designated by the
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...
. Women's College Hospital is associated with Women's College Research Institute, Women's College Hospital Foundation and Women's Health Matters, a bilingual consumer website on women's health and lifestyle issues.


History

Women's College Hospital began as Woman's Medical College in 1883. On June 13, 1883, Dr. Emily Stowe (1831–1903) the second woman licensed to practice medicine in Canada – led a group of her supporters to a meeting at the Toronto Women's Suffrage Club, stating "that medical education for women is a recognized necessity, and consequently facilities for such instruction should be provided." The motion was seconded adding "that the establishment of such a school was a public necessity and in the interests of the community." Less than six months after this meeting, on October 1, 1883, Toronto Mayor A.R. Boswell formally opened Woman's Medical College.


Women's College Hospital leaders

*Dr. Jessie Gray – considered at the time to be one of the top cancer surgeons in North America, she was the first woman to earn a Master of Surgery degree in Canada *Dr. Marion Powell – a leader in raising consciousness in women's sexual health *Dr. Henrietta Banting – spearheaded the use of mammography *Dr. Anna Marion Hilliard – collaborated in the development of a simplified Pap test *Dr. Ricky Kanee Schachter – was the first woman to lead an academic division of dermatology *Dr. Minerva Reid – was the first female Chief of Surgery in North America


Ontario Medical College for Women

In 1895, the College amalgamated with its sister institution in Kingston, Ontario, and changed its name to the Ontario Medical College for Women. A practical experience clinic called the Dispensary was opened in Toronto in 1898. The clinic allowed female patients to obtain the services of women doctors in a field dominated by men. At the time, services were provided regardless of the patient's ability to pay and medical advice was always free. In 1906, the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
opened its doors to permit women to study
medicine 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 the Ontario Medical College for Women closed. The Dispensary remained open and continued to prosper in the city.


Recent history

Women's College Hospital moved to its current location in
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
in 1935, and became a teaching hospital affiliated with the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
in 1961. Later, the hospital merged with Sunnybrook Hospital and the Orthopedic and Arthritic Hospital in 1998 under the provisions of Ontario Bill 51, becoming Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre. In 2006, they de-amalgamated and Women's College Hospital reverted to its original name. During the SARS outbreak of 2003, while still part of the erstwhile "Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre", the Women's College site housed the first ambulatory SARS clinic in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Meanwhile, the Sunnybrook site housed both the first in-patient SARS unit and Intensive Care Unit for SARS in Canada. The hospital was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1995. A plaque was erected by Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada at the Women's College Hospital, Grenville St., Toronto. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited the hospital on March 7, 2024.


About

Women's College Hospital collaborated in the invention of the simplified Pap test, opened Ontario's first regional Sexual Assault Care Centre and was the first hospital in the province to use mammography as a diagnostic tool to detect breast cancer. As of 2012, it is Ontario's first and only independent
ambulatory care Ambulatory care or outpatient care is Health care, medical care provided on an outpatient basis, including diagnosis, observation, consultation, treatment, intervention, and rehabilitation services. This care can include advanced medical technolog ...
centre. Ambulatory care refers to surgeries, diagnostic procedures and treatments that do not require overnight hospitalization. That means patients can be released within 18 hours, and can recover at home.


Complex

WCH's current site consisted of three wings built in 1935, 1956 and 1971 which were all demolished as part of a complete rebuild which was completed in 2015. The 1935 wing was a 10-storey
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
building that was torn down despite historical designation for WCH.


Education

Women's College Hospital is a teaching hospital affiliated with the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
. Research at the hospital, university and research institute are focused around sex and gender differences in physiology and social roles, which cause women to have different health-care needs than men. WCH received a $500,000 grant from the Public Health Agency of Canada's Immunization Partnership Fund to implement a
vaccine A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifi ...
education program targeted towards non-physician health care workers in long-term facilities and at-home care services.


Research

The Women's College Research Institute (WCRI) is the only one of its kind at a Canadian hospital devoted to women's health. International researchers study breast cancer, musculoskeletal health, older women's health and the impact of violence on women's lives. WCRI scientist Dr. Steven Narod was part of the team that discovered the BRCA1 and
BRCA2 ''BRCA2'' and BRCA2 () are human genes and their protein products, respectively. The official symbol (BRCA2, italic for the gene, nonitalic for the protein) and the official name (originally breast cancer 2; currently BRCA2, DNA repair associate ...
genes as breast cancer risks– one of the most important breakthroughs in cancer research. He has changed the way international health professionals understand and test for genes associated with breast and ovarian cancer.


Treatment/clinics

*After Cancer Treatment Transition Clinic: Women's College Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital created Canada's only After Cancer Treatment Transition Clinic (ACTT) to address the health-care needs of cancer survivors. *Virtual Ward: With funding from the Toronto Central Local Health Institution and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, several hospitals have partnered with the Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre to create the first virtual ward in North America. The Virtual Ward uses a health team to work with patients who cannot come to the hospital on a regular basis. *CACE Complex Care Clinic: In collaboration with the University of Toronto, Women's College Hospital built a Centre for Ambulatory Care and Education (CACE) Complex Care Clinic. The clinic opened in 2015 and will focus on providing
ambulatory care Ambulatory care or outpatient care is Health care, medical care provided on an outpatient basis, including diagnosis, observation, consultation, treatment, intervention, and rehabilitation services. This care can include advanced medical technolog ...
. It will use an interdisciplinary approach to medicine. *Bay Centre for Birth Control: The Bay Centre specializes in sexual and reproductive health care for women in Ontario. Services include contraceptive health care, reproductive health care, abortion care, sexual health care, and colonoscopy services. It is located near the main hospital at 790 Bay Street, Toronto.


Women's College Hospital timeline


See also

* Elizabeth Bagshaw * Margaret McKellar * Helen Bell Milburn * Hannah Emily Reid * Ricky Kanee Schachter * Emily Stowe * Marjorie Davis


References


External links


Women's College HospitalWomen's Health Matters
{{authority control Hospitals in Toronto Hospitals affiliated with the University of Toronto Hospitals established in 1883 National Historic Sites in Ontario Public–private partnership projects in Canada Women in Toronto Women's hospitals 1883 establishments in Ontario