About The Oldest Hospital in America
It first opened just four years after the birth of George Washington
A hospital is defined as an institution providing medical and surgical treatment and nursing care for sick or injured people.
Bellevue Hospital located in NYC, New York is the oldest hospital in America. It first opened just four years after the birth of George Washington and 40 years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Bellevue Hospital is defined as America's first public hospital by the Association Of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The City Of New York describes it as the oldest continuously operating hospital in America. NYC Health + Hospitals recognizes it as America’s oldest operating hospital.
The hospital traces its origin from New York’s first permanent almshouse which was a two-story building built in 1736 on the city common, now City Hall Park. In 1798, the city purchased Belle Vue farm, a property near the East River several miles north of the settled city, which had been used to quarantine the sick during a series of yellow fever outbreaks.
The hospital was formally named Bellevue Hospital in 1824, In 1799, it became the first in the U.S. to open a maternity ward. In 1867, the physicians from the hospital were also the first to report that Tuberculosis (TB) was a preventable disease.
Today, Bellevue Hospital can handle 30,000 inpatients, 105,000 emergency visits, and 460,000 outpatient clinic visits per year. Bellevue has an academic affiliation with the New York University School of Medicine, which enhances the quality of care provided to Bellevue patients. It is the medical facility for dignitaries visiting New York City, including the President of the United States and United Nations diplomats.
Bellevue Hospital has defined the standard of practice for microsurgical replantation of hands, fingers and limbs as well as brain and spinal cord injuries. Its Geriatric Ambulatory Care Program is among the largest in the nation, caring for more than 5,000 seniors annually.
In perinatal care, NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue is the Regional Perinatal Center for the 11 hospitals within the health system. Since its humble beginnings as a haven for the indigent, Bellevue has become a major academic medical institution of international renown.
Over the centuries, it served as an incubator for major innovations in public health, medical science and medical education. Often referred to as a national treasure, Bellevue defines the very best traditions of public medicine as a public service vital to the well being of our civil society.