San Juan de Dios Hospital (Santiago)

The San Juan de Dios Hospital was created shortly after the foundation of Santiago and is considered to be the first hospital in the city and the country. The exact date of its foundation is still debatable, but it is believed it was opened on October 3, 1552, at the end of the government of Pedro de Valdivia, under the name Hospital de Nuestra Señora del Socorro. Its original location was on the south side of the Alameda, just across the street from the Iglesia San Francisco.

In 1617 the hospital went on to be administered by the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God. From the colonial era to the present, the hospital has been an important part of the history of the city.

Since 1863 the hospital is considered as a teaching hospital.

Following the demolition of the old building in 1944, the San Juan de Dios Hospital was relocated, rebuilt and reopened on May 1, 1954. The hospital is currently located on Matucana Avenue,^[3] facing Quinta Normal Park.

33°26′31″S 70°40′44″W / 33.442°S 70.679°W / -33.442; -70.679