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88-614: Cheltenham General Hospital is an NHS district general hospital in Cheltenham , Gloucestershire , run by Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust . It provides general hospital services including Accident and Emergency. The Cheltenham Provident Dispensary was founded in 1813, and after moving to Seward House, was renamed Cheltenham General Hospital in 1839. The new General Hospital building in Sandford Road, designed by D. J. Humphries and built between 1848 and 1849, has since served as

176-421: A chargemaster ; however, these prices may be lower for health care obtained within healthcare networks . Legislation requires hospitals to provide care to patients in life-threatening emergency situations regardless of the patient's ability to pay. Privately funded hospitals which admit uninsured patients in emergency situations incur direct financial losses, such as in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina . As

264-620: A medical records department , release of information department , technical support , clinical engineering , facilities management, plant operations , dining services, and security departments. The COVID-19 pandemic stimulated the development of virtual wards across the British NHS . Patients are managed at home, monitoring their own oxygen levels using an oxygen saturation probe if necessary and supported by telephone. West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust managed around 1200 patients at home between March and June 2020 and planned to continue

352-468: A pharmacy , pathology , and radiology . Hospitals are typically funded by public funding , health organizations ( for-profit or nonprofit), health insurance companies, or charities, including direct charitable donations. Historically, hospitals were often founded and funded by religious orders , or by charitable individuals and leaders. Hospitals are currently staffed by professional physicians, surgeons, nurses, and allied health practitioners . In

440-416: A production line . A teaching hospital delivers healthcare to patients as well as training to prospective medical professionals such as medical students and student nurses . It may be linked to a medical school or nursing school, and may be involved in medical research . Students may also observe clinical work in the hospital. Clinics generally provide only outpatient services, but some may have

528-611: A Captain of Invalids (an ex-Army officer responsible for the 'day to day welfare, management and administration' of the pensioners under his charge). There is also a Secretary who traditionally was responsible for paying the Army pensions, but today they look after the annual budget, staff, buildings and grounds. Further senior staff include the Physician & Surgeon, the Matron, the Quartermaster,

616-401: A few inpatient beds and a limited range of services that may otherwise be found in typical hospitals. A hospital contains one or more wards that house hospital beds for inpatients . It may also have acute services such as an emergency department , operating theatre , and intensive care unit , as well as a range of medical specialty departments. A well-equipped hospital may be classified as

704-481: A few related medical specialties . Subtypes include rehabilitation hospitals , children's hospitals , seniors' ( geriatric ) hospitals, long-term acute care facilities , and hospitals for dealing with specific medical needs such as psychiatric problems (see psychiatric hospital ), cancer treatment , certain disease categories such as cardiac, oncology, or orthopedic problems, and so forth. In Germany , specialised hospitals are called Fachkrankenhaus ; an example

792-567: A fine painting of the Resurrection in the half dome of the apse, painted by Sebastiano Ricci and his nephew Marco (who assisted with the painting at the Royal Hospital) and dates from the end of Queen Anne's reign. The chapel was consecrated in August 1691, and services were formerly held twice daily. Nowadays services are confined to Sunday mornings and special military occasions. The Great Hall

880-604: A hospital bed, but be considered outpatient and "under observation" if not formally admitted. In the U.S., inpatient stays are covered under Medicare Part A, but a hospital might keep a patient under observation which is only covered under Medicare Part B, and subjects the patient to additional coinsurance costs. In 2013, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) introduced a "two-midnight" rule for inpatient admissions, intended to reduce an increasing number of long-term "observation" stays being used for reimbursement. This rule

968-449: A hospital just for diagnosis , treatment, or therapy and then leave (" outpatients ") without staying overnight; while others are "admitted" and stay overnight or for several days or weeks or months (" inpatients "). Hospitals are usually distinguished from other types of medical facilities by their ability to admit and care for inpatients whilst the others, which are smaller, are often described as clinics . The best-known type of hospital

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1056-692: A hospital; Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia opened in 1752, New York Hospital , now Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City opened in 1771, and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston opened in 1811. When the Vienna General Hospital opened in 1784 as the world's largest hospital, physicians acquired a new facility that gradually developed into one of the most important research centers. Another Enlightenment era charitable innovation

1144-553: A new infirmary building which was located to the west of the main building on the site of the current National Army Museum and was destroyed by bombing during the Second World War . It was replaced by a modern infirmary which was located to the east of the main building and opened by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in 1961. The 1960s infirmary was demolished to make way for the Margaret Thatcher Infirmary which

1232-489: A particularly important provider of healthcare to uninsured patients and patients with Medi-Cal (which is California's Medicaid program, serving low-income persons, some senior citizens , persons with disabilities , children in foster care , and pregnant women). In 2012, district hospitals provided $ 54 million in uncompensated care in California. A specialty hospital is primarily and exclusively dedicated to one or

1320-922: A phenomenon known as international healthcare accreditation , by groups such as Accreditation Canada in Canada , the Joint Commission in the U.S., the Trent Accreditation Scheme in Great Britain , and the Haute Autorité de santé (HAS) in France . In England , hospitals are monitored by the Care Quality Commission . In 2020, they turned their attention to hospital food standards after seven patient deaths from listeria linked to pre-packaged sandwiches and salads in 2019, saying "Nutrition and hydration

1408-543: A result, Dutch architectural historian Cor Wagenaar has called many hospitals: Royal Hospital Chelsea The Royal Hospital Chelsea is an Old Soldiers' retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army . Founded as an almshouse — the ancient sense of the word "hospital" — by King Charles II in 1682, it is a 66-acre (27 ha) site located on Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea, London . It

1496-462: A significantly greater number of patients. It has 3,000 beds and performs 3,000 paediatric cardiac operations annually, the largest number in the world for such a facility. Surgeons are paid on a fixed salary instead of per operation, thus when the number of procedures increases, the hospital is able to take advantage of economies of scale and reduce its cost per procedure. Each specialist may also become more efficient by working on one procedure like

1584-621: A sudden illness. A district hospital typically is the major health care facility in its region, with many beds for intensive care and additional beds for patients who need long-term care. Specialized hospitals include trauma centers , rehabilitation hospitals , children's hospitals , geriatric hospitals, and hospitals for specific medical needs, such as psychiatric hospitals for psychiatric treatment and other disease-specific categories. Specialized hospitals can help reduce health care costs compared to general hospitals. Hospitals are classified as general, specialty, or government depending on

1672-411: A trauma center. They may also have other services such as a hospital pharmacy , radiology , pathology , and medical laboratories . Some hospitals have outpatient departments such as behavioral health services, dentistry , and rehabilitation services . A hospital may also have a department of nursing , headed by a chief nursing officer or director of nursing . This department is responsible for

1760-463: Is Fachkrankenhaus Coswig (thoracic surgery). In India, specialty hospitals are known as super-specialty hospitals and are distinguished from multispecialty hospitals which are composed of several specialties. Specialised hospitals can help reduce health care costs compared to general hospitals. For example, Narayana Health 's cardiac unit in Bangalore specialises in cardiac surgery and allows for

1848-604: Is a centre of excellence and the hub of the Three Counties Cancer Network. Additional specialisms include ophthalmology , with a Diabetic Eye Screening Unit. District general hospital A hospital is a healthcare 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 emergency department to treat urgent health problems ranging from fire and accident victims to

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1936-516: Is a legend that Nell Gwynne , Charles II's mistress, suggested red coats for the Chelsea Pensioners because she remembered the pensioners of Coningsby Hospital in Hereford (her reputed birth town) wore coats of the same colour. The Royal Hospital Founder's Day takes place close to 29 May each year – the birthday of Charles II of England, and the date of his restoration as King in 1660. It

2024-495: Is a state-of-the-art care home that offers nursing and a GP surgery. The Matron is in charge of the infirmary and has a team including nurses, therapists and care staff. The MTI has a gym and a hydrotherapy pool for use by In-Pensioners. It has a range of activities pensioners can join, from pottery classes to poetry recitals. The infirmary received the Quality Hallmark Award at Beacon Status (the highest level possible) from

2112-709: Is also known as Oak Apple Day , as it commemorates the escape of the future King following his defeat at the Battle of Worcester in 1651, when he hid in the Royal Oak to avoid capture by Parliamentary forces. On Founder's Day, in-pensioners of the Royal Hospital are reviewed by a member of the British Royal Family . The 7' 6" (229 cm) statue of King Charles II which stands in the central court (the Figure Court) of

2200-557: Is an independent charity and relies partly upon donations to cover day-to-day running costs to provide care and accommodation for veterans. Residents are known as Chelsea Pensioners . The gardens of the Royal Hospital are Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens . King Charles II founded the Royal Hospital as a retreat for veterans in 1682. The initiative is said to have come from Nell Gwyn according to Peter Cunningham's "The Story of Nell Gwyn" [1851]. The tradition

2288-493: Is part of a patient's recovery." The World Health Organization reported in 2011 that being admitted to a hospital was far riskier than flying. Globally, the chance of a patient being subject to a treatment error in a hospital was about 10%, and the chance of death resulting from an error was about one in 300. according to Liam Donaldson . 7% of hospitalised patients in developed countries, and 10% in developing countries, acquire at least one health care-associated infection . In

2376-538: Is the general hospital, also known as an acute-care hospital. These facilities handle many kinds of disease and injury, and normally have an emergency department (sometimes known as "accident & emergency") or trauma center to deal with immediate and urgent threats to health. Larger cities may have several hospitals of varying sizes and facilities. Some hospitals, especially in the United States and Canada, have their own ambulance service. A district hospital typically

2464-432: Is the major health care facility in its region, with large numbers of beds for intensive care , critical care , and long-term care. In California, "district hospital" refers specifically to a class of healthcare facility created shortly after World War II to address a shortage of hospital beds in many local communities. Even today, district hospitals are the sole public hospitals in 19 of California's counties, and are

2552-566: The Mahavamsa , the ancient chronicle of Sinhalese royalty, written in the sixth century AD, King Pandukabhaya of Sri Lanka (r. 437–367 BC) had lying-in-homes and hospitals (Sivikasotthi-Sala). A hospital and medical training center also existed at Gundeshapur , a major city in southwest of the Sassanid Persian Empire founded in AD 271 by Shapur I . In ancient Greece , temples dedicated to

2640-498: The Battle of Sedgemoor . Wren expanded his original design to add two additional quadrangles to the east and west of the central court; these were known respectively as the "Light Horse Court" and the "College Court". Due to mismanagement by Lord Ranelagh , the Hospital Treasurer, the building was not completed until 1692. Sir John Soane , who was clerk of works in the early part of the 19th century, designed and constructed

2728-557: The Latin hospes , signifying a stranger or foreigner, hence a guest. Another noun derived from this, hospitium came to signify hospitality, that is the relation between guest and shelterer, hospitality, friendliness, and hospitable reception. By metonymy , the Latin word then came to mean a guest-chamber, guest's lodging, an inn . Hospes is thus the root for the English words host (where

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2816-681: The Sultanate of Singora by the Siamese in 1680, taken from the Siamese by the Burmese in the Burmese–Siamese war of 1765–1767 and transported to Burma . In the third Anglo-Burmese War (1885–1887) the cannon was taken by the British and shipped back to England. The hospital maintains a 'military-based culture which puts a premium on comradeship'. The in-pensioners are formed into four companies, each headed by

2904-489: The p was dropped for convenience of pronunciation) hospitality , hospice , hostel, and hotel . The latter modern word derives from Latin via the Old French romance word hostel , which developed a silent s , which letter was eventually removed from the word, the loss of which is signified by a circumflex in the modern French word hôtel . The German word Spital shares similar roots. Some patients go to

2992-544: The 1970s and have since expanded rapidly across the United States. The Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider of health careservices in the world. It has around 18,000 clinics, 16,000 homes for the elderly and those with special needs, and 5,500 hospitals, with 65 percent of them located in developing countries. In 2010, the Church's Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers said that

3080-578: The Chaplain and the Adjutant. A Board of Commissioners has governed the Royal Hospital since 1702. The ex-officio chairman of the board is HM Paymaster General (whose predecessor Sir Stephen Fox was instrumental in founding the hospital in the seventeenth century). The purpose of the Board is 'to guide the development of The Royal Hospital, ensuring the care and well-being of the residents who live there and safeguarding

3168-581: The Church manages 26% of the world's health care facilities. Modern hospitals derive funding from a variety of sources. They may be funded by private payment and health insurance or public expenditure , charitable donations . In the United Kingdom , the National Health Service delivers health care to legal residents funded by the state "free at the point of delivery", and emergency care free to anyone regardless of nationality or status. Due to

3256-664: The French government sent two scholar administrators, Coulomb and Tenon , who had visited most of the hospitals in Europe. They were impressed and the "pavilion" design was copied in France and throughout Europe. English physician Thomas Percival (1740–1804) wrote a comprehensive system of medical conduct, Medical Ethics; or, a Code of Institutes and Precepts, Adapted to the Professional Conduct of Physicians and Surgeons (1803) that set

3344-524: The Islamic world was built in 805 in Baghdad by Harun Al-Rashid . By the 10th century, Baghdad had five more hospitals, while Damascus had six hospitals by the 15th century, and Córdoba alone had 50 major hospitals, many exclusively for the military, by the end of the 15th century. The Islamic bimaristan served as a center of medical treatment, as well nursing home and lunatic asylum . It typically treated

3432-712: The National Gold Standards Framework Centre in End of Life Care in 2015. The annual Ceremony of the Christmas Cheeses is based on a 300-year-old tradition which began in 1692, when the Royal Hospital Chelsea asked a local cheesemonger to provide in-pensioners with cheese to get them through the festive period. The Dairy Council is now in its 56th year of organising a special ceremony at the hospital, where donations from cheesemongers from across

3520-577: The Roman population, were occasionally privately built in extremely wealthy Roman households located in the countryside for that family, although this practice seems to have ended in 80 AD. The declaration of Christianity as an accepted religion in the Roman Empire drove an expansion of the provision of care. Following the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325 construction of a hospital in every cathedral town

3608-534: The Royal Hospital and Ranelagh Gardens as they appeared in 1742. Daily walking tours of the site and museum, led by Chelsea pensioners themselves, can be booked in advance. The South Grounds of the Royal Hospital are also used for large-scale public events including the world-famous Chelsea Flower Show , held by the Royal Horticultural Society . The show has been held in the grounds since 1913, and attracts around 165,000 visitors. In September 2022,

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3696-407: The U.S., 1.7 million infections are acquired in hospital each year, leading to 100,000 deaths, figures much worse than in Europe where there were 4.5 million infections and 37,000 deaths. Modern hospital buildings are designed to minimise the effort of medical personnel and the possibility of contamination while maximising the efficiency of the whole system. Travel time for personnel within

3784-449: The administration of professional nursing practice, research , and policy for the hospital. Many units have both a nursing and a medical director that serve as administrators for their respective disciplines within that unit. For example, within an intensive care nursery, a medical director is responsible for physicians and medical care, while the nursing manager is responsible for all the nurses and nursing care. Support units may include

3872-459: The average length of stay, time to service, patient satisfaction, physician performance, patient readmission rate, inpatient mortality rate, and case mix index . In the United States , the number of hospitalizations grew to its peak in 1981 with 171 admissions per 1,000 Americans and 6,933 hospitals. This trend subsequently reversed, with the rate of hospitalization falling by more than 10% and

3960-404: The birth of specialised medicine. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, medical advancements such as anesthesia and sterile techniques that could make surgery less risky, and the availability of more advanced diagnostic devices such as X-rays , continued to make hospitals a more attractive option for treatment. Modern hospitals measure various efficiency metrics such as occupancy rates,

4048-587: The country are presented to the residents. A Chelsea pensioner cuts the ceremonial cheese with a sword and the cheese is distributed among the pensioners around the Christmas period. Another annual tradition at the Royal Hospital is the Christmas Cake Ceremony, which commenced in 1949. It is a symbol of the enduring friendship between the UK and Australia and takes the form of a Christmas cake being presented to

4136-567: The crown; this was the first instance of secular support being provided for medical institutions. In 1682, Charles II founded the Royal Hospital Chelsea as a retirement home for old soldiers known as Chelsea Pensioners , an instance of the use of the word "hospital" to mean an almshouse . Ten years later, Mary II founded the Royal Hospital for Seamen, Greenwich , with the same purpose. The voluntary hospital movement began in

4224-455: The early 18th century, with hospitals being founded in London by the 1720s, including Westminster Hospital (1719) promoted by the private bank C. Hoare & Co and Guy's Hospital (1724) funded from the bequest of the wealthy merchant, Thomas Guy . Other hospitals sprang up in London and other British cities over the century, many paid for by private subscriptions. St Bartholomew's in London

4312-523: The fireplace is by William Emmett. The room was completed between 1685 and 1688. It was fully roofed in 1685 days before Charles II died. Within the State Apartments is also an Ante-Chamber. Both the Council Chamber and Ante-Chamber can be hired for private functions and weddings. The Margaret Thatcher Infirmary houses around 100 Chelsea Pensioners. Opened in 2009 by Charles, Prince of Wales it

4400-572: The foundation was the establishment in 1677 of pensions for "Reformed Officers (i.e. officers of disbanded regiments) and maimed soldiers". The main inspirational force behind the foundation of the hospital was Sir Stephen Fox (1627–1716), Paymaster of the Forces and a trusted and able royal administrator of the King, and in 1681 Fox and the king initiated plans for a permanent hospital for disabled soldiers. Letters patent were issued on 22 December 1681 notifying

4488-447: The hall was then used for recreational purposes. It was here that the Duke of Wellington lay in state in 1852 and the table on which his coffin rested is just inside the entrance. The hall reverted to its original use as a dining hall in 1955. The heavily moulded ceiling displaying James II 's cypher is by John Grove, the wainscoting is by William Cleere and the fine lime-wood carving over

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4576-483: The healer-god Asclepius , known as Asclepeion functioned as centers of medical advice, prognosis, and healing. The Asclepeia spread to the Roman Empire . While public healthcare was non-existent in the Roman Empire, military hospitals called valetudinaria did exist stationed in military barracks and would serve the soldiers and slaves within the fort. Evidence exists that some civilian hospitals, while unavailable to

4664-517: The hospital and the transportation of patients between units is facilitated and minimised. The building also should be built to accommodate heavy departments such as radiology and operating rooms while space for special wiring, plumbing, and waste disposal must be allowed for in the design. However, many hospitals, even those considered "modern", are the product of continual and often badly managed growth over decades or even centuries, with utilitarian new sections added on as needs and finances dictate. As

4752-570: The hospital from the Australian Returned and Services League, with each Australian state taking it in turns year by year. Again, a pensioner at the Royal Hospital cuts the cake with a sword. The on-site museum details the history and life of the Royal Hospital and its In-Pensioners, together with displays of artefacts, documents, medals, cap badges and uniforms. Recent additions include the Sovereign's mace and Parade Chair. A large diorama depicts

4840-463: The hospital served as the meeting point for foreign heads of state, leaders, and ambassadors to gather ahead of Queen Elizabeth 's funeral . From there, the dignitaries traveled to Westminster Abbey by coach. Prominently displayed in the grounds next to the flagpole is an inscribed cannon from Singora bearing the seal of Sultan Sulaiman Shah. The cannon was made in Singora around 1623, captured from

4928-411: The hospital was cast in copper alloy by Grinling Gibbons ; it was originally gilded but was bronzed in 1787. In 2002, the statue was regilded to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. The hospital's chapel was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and is a fine and rare example of Wren's pure ecclesiastical work: it rises 42 feet (13 m) high and was completed in 1687. The chapel contains

5016-434: The hospital, and in the surrounding area, pensioners are encouraged to wear a blue uniform (known fondly as "blues"). If they travel farther from the Royal Hospital they should wear the distinctive scarlet coats instead of the blue uniform. The scarlet coats are also worn for ceremonial occasions, accompanied by tricorne hats. (At other times a peaked shako is worn.) In uniform, the pensioners wear their medal ribbons and

5104-532: The hospitals. They also changed from being mere homes of refuge to being complex institutions for the provision and advancement of medicine and care for sick. The Charité was founded in Berlin in 1710 by King Frederick I of Prussia as a response to an outbreak of plague. Voluntary hospitals also spread to Colonial America ; Bellevue Hospital in New York City opened in 1736, first as a workhouse and then later as

5192-494: The insignia of rank they reached while serving in the military. They may also wear other insignia they earned during their service and many pensioners now wear parachute jump wings and even SAS jump wings. Contrary to popular belief, it is not illegal to impersonate a Chelsea pensioner; the myth probably dates from a ruling, repealed by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008 , regarding the fraud of taking an unearned pension. There

5280-434: The king's intention of building "an hospital for the relief of such land soldiers as are, or shall be, old, lame, or infirm in ye service of the crowne". For this purpose he appointed as "Receiver General and Treasurer of the moneys raised for the erection and maintenance of the hospital" Nicholas Johnson (d.1682), Fox's brother-in-law and successor as Paymaster of the Forces. The office of "Receiver or Paymaster and Treasurer"

5368-674: The mace is decorated with acorns and is surmounted by the St Edward's Crown. In March 2009, the first women in the hospital's 317-year history were admitted as In-Pensioners. Winifred Phillips and Dorothy Hughes were the first. Winifred Phillips trained as a nurse and later joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 before enlisting in the Women's Royal Army Corps in 1949 while serving in Egypt . After 22 years of service she retired with

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5456-638: The main hospital in Cheltenham. It took over the operation of the Cheltenham Ophthalmic Hospital c .1882, and joined the National Health Service in 1948. The popular entertainer Eric Morecambe died at the hospital in 1984. Cheltenham General Hospital provides general hospital services as well as some specialist services. There are 16 wards, a number of specialist departments and a minor injuries unit. The specialist Oncology Centre

5544-417: The medieval concept of Christian care evolved during the 16th and 17th centuries into a secular one. In England , after the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540 by King Henry VIII , the church abruptly ceased to be the supporter of hospitals, and only by direct petition from the citizens of London, were the hospitals St Bartholomew's , St Thomas's and St Mary of Bethlehem's (Bedlam) endowed directly by

5632-481: The modern hospital was beginning to take shape with a proliferation of a variety of public and private hospital systems. By the 1870s, hospitals had more than trebled their original average intake of 3,000 patients. In continental Europe the new hospitals generally were built and run from public funds. The National Health Service , the principal provider of health care in the United Kingdom, was founded in 1948. During

5720-415: The modern profession of nursing during the Crimean War when she set an example of compassion, commitment to patient care and diligent and thoughtful hospital administration. The first official nurses' training programme, the Nightingale School for Nurses, was opened in 1860, with the mission of training nurses to work in hospitals, to work with the poor and to teach. Nightingale was instrumental in reforming

5808-399: The nature of the hospital, by improving sanitation standards and changing the image of the hospital from a place the sick would go to die, to an institution devoted to recuperation and healing. She also emphasised the importance of statistical measurement for determining the success rate of a given intervention and pushed for administrative reform at hospitals. By the late 19th century,

5896-444: The need for hospitals to prioritise their limited resources, there is a tendency in countries with such systems for 'waiting lists' for non-crucial treatment, so those who can afford it may take out private health care to access treatment more quickly. In the United States , hospitals typically operate privately and in some cases on a for-profit basis, such as HCA Healthcare . The list of procedures and their prices are billed with

5984-421: The nineteenth century, the Second Viennese Medical School emerged with the contributions of physicians such as Carl Freiherr von Rokitansky , Josef Škoda , Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra , and Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis . Basic medical science expanded and specialisation advanced. Furthermore, the first dermatology, eye, as well as ear, nose, and throat clinics in the world were founded in Vienna , being considered as

6072-412: The number of US hospitals shrinking from 6,933 in 1981 to 5,534 in 2016. Occupancy rates also dropped from 77% in 1980 to 60% in 2013. Among the reasons for this are the increasing availability of more complex care elsewhere such as at home or the physicians' offices and also the less therapeutic and more life-threatening image of the hospitals in the eyes of the public. In the US, a patient may sleep in

6160-476: The original meaning of the word, hospitals were original "places of hospitality", and this meaning is still preserved in the names of some institutions such as the Royal Hospital Chelsea , established in 1681 as a retirement and nursing home for veteran soldiers. During the Middle Ages, hospitals served different functions from modern institutions in that they were almshouses for the poor, hostels for pilgrims , or hospital schools. The word "hospital" comes from

6248-409: The past, however, this work was usually performed by the members of founding religious orders or by volunteers . However, there are various Catholic religious orders, such as the Alexians and the Bon Secours Sisters that still focus on hospital ministry in the late 1990s, as well as several other Christian denominations, including the Methodists and Lutherans, which run hospitals. In accordance with

6336-406: The poor, as the rich would have been treated in their own homes. Hospitals in this era were the first to require medical licenses for doctors, and compensation for negligence could be made. Hospitals were forbidden by law to turn away patients who were unable to pay. These hospitals were financially supported by waqfs , as well as state funds. In India, public hospitals existed at least since

6424-412: The quality of health care has increasingly become an issue around the world, hospitals have increasingly had to pay serious attention to this matter. Independent external assessment of quality is one of the most powerful ways to assess this aspect of health care, and hospital accreditation is one means by which this is achieved. In many parts of the world such accreditation is sourced from other countries,

6512-648: The rank of Warrant Officer Class 2 . Dorothy Hughes had joined the British Army in 1941 aged 18, later working as part of 450 Heavy Anti Aircraft Battery in the London Division. In 1945 the Battery was deployed near Dover to defend against V1 flying bomb attacks. She retired with the rank of Sergeant . Chelsea Pensioners are entitled to come and go from the Royal Hospital as they please, and are permitted to wear civilian clothing wherever they travel. However, within

6600-513: The reign of Firuz Shah Tughlaq in the 14th century. The Mughal emperor Jahangir in the 17th century established hospitals in large cities at government expense with records showing salaries and grants for medicine being paid for by the government. In China, during the Song dynasty , the state began to take on social welfare functions previously provided by Buddhist monasteries and instituted public hospitals, hospices and dispensaries . In Europe

6688-432: The sole locally accessible hospital within nine additional counties in which one or more other hospitals are present at a substantial distance from a local community. Twenty-eight of California's rural hospitals and 20 of its critical-access hospitals are district hospitals. They are formed by local municipalities, have boards that are individually elected by their local communities, and exist to serve local needs. They are

6776-470: The sources of income received. A teaching hospital combines assistance to people with teaching to health science students and auxiliary healthcare students. A health science facility smaller than a hospital is generally called a clinic. Hospitals have a range of departments (e.g. surgery and urgent care ) and specialist units such as cardiology . Some hospitals have outpatient departments and some have chronic treatment units. Common support units include

6864-402: The standard for many textbooks. In the mid-19th century, hospitals and the medical profession became more professionalised, with a reorganisation of hospital management along more bureaucratic and administrative lines. The Apothecaries Act 1815 made it compulsory for medical students to practise for at least half a year at a hospital as part of their training. Florence Nightingale pioneered

6952-555: The system after COVID-19, initially for respiratory patients. Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust started a COVID Oximetry@Home service in April 2020. This enables them to monitor more than 5000 patients a day in their own homes. The technology allows nurses, carers, or patients to record and monitor vital signs such as blood oxygen levels. In early India , Fa Xian , a Chinese Buddhist monk who travelled across India c.  AD 400 , recorded examples of healing institutions. According to

7040-426: Was a pioneer of hospital design in having "pavilions" to minimize the spread of infection. John Wesley visited in 1785, and commented "I never saw anything of the kind so complete; every part is so convenient, and so admirably neat. But there is nothing superfluous, and nothing purely ornamented, either within or without." This revolutionary design was made more widely known by John Howard , the philanthropist. In 1787

7128-476: Was also designed by Sir Christopher Wren and was originally intended as a dining hall, furnished with 16 long tables, one for each original Long Ward. It contains a large mural painting from around 1690, which depicts Charles II of England on horseback being crowned by the winged figure of Victory, with the Royal Hospital Buildings behind. Just before 1800 the pensioners started dining in the wards and

7216-456: Was begun, including among the earliest hospitals by Saint Sampson in Constantinople and by Basil, bishop of Caesarea in modern-day Turkey. By the twelfth century, Constantinople had two well-organised hospitals, staffed by doctors who were both male and female. Facilities included systematic treatment procedures and specialised wards for various diseases. The earliest general hospital in

7304-440: Was designed by Sir Quinlan Terry and was completed in 2008, providing a state-of-the-art care home. In 2002, the sovereign's mace was presented to the hospital – up until then, the hospital had had no colours or distinctive device – the mace is now carried at all the ceremonial events at the hospital. The mace was designed by Charles Webb and Aubrey Bowden and was made by Master Goldsmith Norman Bassant. The bowl of

7392-417: Was held by all subsequent Paymaster of the Forces until the latter office was abolished in 1836. Fox himself, the "richest commoner in the three kingdoms ", donated £13,000 towards the new hospital (equivalent to £2,606,000 in 2023). The Royal Hospital opened its doors to the Chelsea Pensioners in 1692 for "the relief and succour" of veterans. Some of the first soldiers admitted included those injured at

7480-455: Was later dropped in 2018. In 2016 and 2017, healthcare reform and a continued decline in admissions resulted in US hospital-based healthcare systems performing poorly financially. Microhospitals, with bed capacities of between eight and fifty, are expanding in the United States. Similarly, freestanding emergency rooms, which transfer patients that require inpatient care to hospitals, were popularised in

7568-541: Was perpetuated when her portrait was used as a sign for a public house in Grosvenor Row (a thoroughfare which disappeared in the 19th century). The provision of a hostel rather than the payment of pensions was inspired by Les Invalides in Paris. The site for the Royal Hospital was an area of Chelsea, London which held an incomplete building " Chelsey College ", a theological college James I founded in 1609. The precursor to

7656-522: Was rebuilt from 1730 to 1759, and the London Hospital, Whitechapel, opened in 1752. These hospitals represented a turning point in the function of the institution; they began to evolve from being basic places of care for the sick to becoming centers of medical innovation and discovery and the principal place for the education and training of prospective practitioners. Some of the era's greatest surgeons and doctors worked and passed on their knowledge at

7744-850: Was the dispensary; these would issue the poor with medicines free of charge. The London Dispensary opened its doors in 1696 as the first such clinic in the British Empire . The idea was slow to catch on until the 1770s, when many such organisations began to appear, including the Public Dispensary of Edinburgh (1776), the Metropolitan Dispensary and Charitable Fund (1779) and the Finsbury Dispensary (1780). Dispensaries were also opened in New York 1771, Philadelphia 1786, and Boston 1796. The Royal Naval Hospital, Stonehouse , Plymouth ,

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