Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital | |
|---|---|
 Old Tsan Yuk Hospital, now Western District Community Centre | |
 Interactive map of the Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital area | |
| Former names | Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| Location | 36A Western Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong |
| Current tenants | Western District Community Centre |
| Completed | 17 October 1922 |
| Cost | HK$ 94,000 |
| Designated | 18 December 2009 |
| Reference no. | 132 |
| Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 舊贊育醫院 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Western District Community Centre | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 西區社區中心 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital is located at No. 36A Western Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1922 under the Chinese Public Dispensary Committee. After the war, Tsan Yuk Hospital has moved to Hospital Road and the site has become a multi-purpose community centre called Western District Community Centre.
Three-storeys high and 1,100 m2 (12,000 sq ft) in area, the British-colonial-style building comprises a three-storey hospital block with a basement, a two-storey staff quarters with annex and a one-storey servant quarters,[1] all of which have now been converted into offices and function rooms for the community centre.
Tsan Yuk Hospital was originally located at the cross-section of Western Street and Third Street in Hong Kong's Sai Ying Pun district. The land on which the hospital was built was donated by the government and the $94,000 construction fee was donated by Mr. H. M. H Nemazee, Sai Ying Pun Kai Fong Committee (西營盤街坊會) of the Fishmongers' Guild (魚販商會) and Fruit and Vegetable Sellers' Guild (蔬果販商協會). The thirty beds were donated by Tung Wah Hospital, another government hospital located in neighbouring Sheung Wan.[2]
The hospital was opened by the English missionary group London Missionary Society on 17 October 1922. Initially opened as a maternity hospital to address the growing need for neonatal services and the training of midwives and obstetricians, Tsan Yuk was founded with the aim of meeting these demands. Dr. Alice D. Hickling, recruited by the London Missionary Society as the first foreign female doctor in Hong Kong, was appointed as the hospital's director. Recognizing the strong interest among women in Hong Kong to become professional midwives, she proposed providing training through the hospital. Dr. S.W. Tso (曹善允博士), Chairman of the Chinese Public Dispensary Committee (華人公共診所委員會), supported her idea. Consequently, Tsan Yuk evolved into one of Hong Kong's leading maternity teaching hospitals.
Tsan Yuk Hospital was closed in 1944, during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, and most of the furniture and equipment was moved to Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital.[citation needed]
By the early 1950s, Tsan Yuk was experiencing bed shortages and limited places for patients. The Hong Kong Jockey Club donated $3,570,000 to build a new hospital on nearby Hospital Road. On 13 June 1955, Sir Alexander William George Herder Grantham held the opening ceremony for the new Tsan Yuk Hospital. Following the move, the premises were then used to house the Western District Community Centre.
Current use
The Community Centre consists of activity rooms, exhibition rooms and lecture theatres. They are commonly used by the following organizations:
- The Hong Kong Committee on Children's Rights
- Sai Ying Pun Kai-fong Welfare Association
- Central & Western District Committee on Promotion of IT Archived 21 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- Hong Kong Breastfeeding Mothers' Association
- The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage
- Yan Chai hospital Chinese Medicine Clinic Archived 6 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- Scout Association of Hong Kong, Western District, Hong Kong Island Region
- Tung Sin Tan Archived 7 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- Yuen Yuen VLearn Women Centre
- St James' Settlement Urban Renewal Social Service Team
