Ospedale Italiano (בית חולים איטלקי) in Haifa (HaMeginim Street 106) is a hospital which is run by Franciscan nuns and specializes in Oncology, General Surgery, Internal Medicine and Orthopedic Rehabilitation.
The four-story building was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi and contains about 100 patient beds that cater the needs of those four important departments. The nursing staff consists of nuns from the Order of Franciscans, who are residing in the hospital.
The main entrance
The hospital was established in 1907 and was financed by the National Association to Assist Italian Missionaries (A.N.S.M.I - Associazione Nazionale per Soccorrere i Missionari Italiani), which is an Italian religious organization established for assisting the needy population in the Middle East and providing services to pilgrims, mainly from Italy, during their visits to the Holy Land.
When the hospital was founded, on its previous location in the city (Shivat Zion Street), it was the only surgical hospital in northern Israel. For a period of almost two decades, this hospital functioned as the first and only hospital in the Haifa region.
The hospital in the 1930s
In 1933, the hospital moved to its new location, where it has remained until today.
The hospital's Latin seal (1933)
With the establishment of the state during 1948, and as a consequence of being an equipped hospital with excellent operating rooms, the hospital was turned into a military hospital. In 1953, after several years as a military hospital, it was reopened as a civilian hospital.
The lobby
The entrance to the operating room
The recovery room
The hospital was a pioneer in the surgery field and the first to purchase a screening device for the treatment of malignant tumors.
The entrance to the radiology section
Today, the hospital performs various types of surgeries, including cosmetic and oncology surgery, and has continuously upheld the motto: "To achieve excellence while providing individual treatment with a personal touch to all of its patients".
Fine art in the hospital hallway
The decorative garden
- Photos and main text by Oreste Lanza ti.kooltuo|79etsero#| and Netali Blinks moc.liamg|sknilbaten#| (December 2015)
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