History
It was opened in 1884 by Giovanni (John) Ortelli in his home in Queen Square to provide medical care to poor Italians
According to Nick Black, it also accepted non-Italian patients (Nick Black, Walking London’s Medical History, 2006)
It closed in 1990 for financial reasons and the building was sold
The revenue from the sale of the building was used to form the Italian Hospital Fund, a charity which continues to provide financial support to Italians for medical care
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What was reforming about it?
Its founder was a businessman, not a doctor or other medical professional
Where in Bloomsbury
It later expanded into 40 Queen Square; eventually these houses were demolished and replaced by a purpose-built hospital in 1898–1899
The hospital expanded further in 1911, displacing three old houses in Devonshire Street (Godfrey Heathcote Hamilton, Queen Square: Its Neighbourhood and its Institutions, 1926)
Website of current institution
The successor institution is the Italian Medical Charity at (opens in new window)
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Books about it
History of the Italian Hospital in London, 1884–1906 (1906)
Margaret Avon, ‘The Italian Hospital in London,’ Nurse, vol. 6, no. 2 (1966)
Archives
Most of its records are apparently lost, as is the British Library’s copy of the History
Records from 1897–1926 relating to its King Edward’s Hospital Fund grant applications are held in London Metropolitan Archives, ref. A/KE/250/8; details are available online via (opens in new window)
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