History

The Sisters of St. Joseph came to Hamilton in 1854 and began to work for the poor and needy residents of this growing and important trade centre. For the Sisters, it was an honour to serve others, and, with the onset of a cholera epidemic, the Sisters health care mission began in earnest. Working in railway sheds near the Hamilton harbour, they risked their lives to care for the sick and dying victims of the deadly disease.

In 1890 the Sisters moved closer to their vision of a modern and progressive system of health care with the opening of a 25-bed hospital located on John Street.

And so begins the Story of St. Josephs Healthcare Hamilton.

The 20th Century saw many advances, including the opening of the Nursing School in 1911 and a partnership with McMaster University and its groundbreaking new Medical School in 1969. Advances in technology and the appointment of legendary clinical and scientific leaders complemented the strongly imbedded Mission of Caring. By centurys end, many further achievements had been realised, including the founding of the Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health and the creation of the Father Sean OSullivan Research Centre. Canadas first hospital sponsored Ambulatory Centre was also founded during this time and the former Hamilton Psychiatric Hospital was welcomed into the St. Josephs Healthcare family.

St. Josephs Healthcare is honoured to be a partner in the St. Josephs Health System. Along with system partners, St. Josephs Lifecare Centre, Brantford; St. Josephs Villa, Dundas; St. Marys General Hospital, Kitchener; St. Josephs Health Centre, Guelph; and St. Josephs Home Care, Hamilton, St. Josephs Healthcare is one of the largest corporations in Canada devoted to health care and known for genuine compassion and caring, locally and around the world.

Today, St. Josephs Healthcare spends approximately half-a-billion dollars every year, bringing the most advanced services to hundreds of thousands of patients at four major campuses. We train thousands of students to care for future generations, and more than four hundred highly skilled research staff bring new discoveries and new hope to patients around the world.

Over the course of 150 years of advances, the clinicians and staff at St. Josephs Healthcare remember their history and their motto forever remains, It is an honour to serve our community.