Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital
Encyclopedia
Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital is the second largest hospital
in the world after West China hospital of Medical Sciences, Sichuan University
, occupying 173 acre (0.70010678 km²), with 3 200 beds and 6 760 staff members. The hospital is in the Soweto
area of Johannesburg
, South Africa
. (Soweto was a separate municipality from 1983 to 2002, when it was amalgamated to the City of Johannesburg.) It is one of the 40 Gauteng
provincial hospitals, and is financed and run by the Gauteng Provincial Health Authorities. It is a teaching hospital
for the University of the Witwatersrand
Medical School, along with the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital
, Helen Joseph Hospital and the Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital.
noted during the opening ceremonies that the facility would be used for the area's black population after the war. In 1947 King George VI visited and presented medals to the troops there. From this start grew Baragwanath Hospital (as it became known after 1948), reputedly the world's largest hospital. In 1997 another name change followed, with the sprawling facility now known as Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in honour of the African National Congress
leader who was assassinated in 1993 by extremists.
The name Baragwanath
is of Cornish language
origin, meaning "wheaten bread."
26.262438°N 27.93967°W
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
in the world after West China hospital of Medical Sciences, Sichuan University
Sichuan University
Sichuan University is one of the oldest national universities in China. It is ranked No. 8 among the Chinese universities according to the 2010 Academic Ranking of World Universities....
, occupying 173 acre (0.70010678 km²), with 3 200 beds and 6 760 staff members. The hospital is in the Soweto
Soweto
Soweto is a lower-class-populated urban area of the city of Johannesburg in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for South Western Townships...
area of Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. (Soweto was a separate municipality from 1983 to 2002, when it was amalgamated to the City of Johannesburg.) It is one of the 40 Gauteng
Gauteng
Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. It was formed from part of the old Transvaal Province after South Africa's first all-race elections on 27 April 1994...
provincial hospitals, and is financed and run by the Gauteng Provincial Health Authorities. It is a teaching hospital
Teaching hospital
A teaching hospital is a hospital that provides clinical education and training to future and current doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, in addition to delivering medical care to patients...
for the University of the Witwatersrand
University of the Witwatersrand
The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg is a South African university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University...
Medical School, along with the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital
Johannesburg General Hospital
'The Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital , nicknamed Joburg Gen is an accredited general hospital in Parktown, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. It has 1088 beds...
, Helen Joseph Hospital and the Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital.
History
The Royal Imperial Hospital, Baragwanath, was built in what today is Diepkloof in 1941 for convalescing British and Commonwealth soldiers. John Albert Baragwanath owned a hostel, The Wayside Inn, from the late 19th century near the hospital's current location http://www.chrishanibaragwanathhospital.co.za/bara/article.jsp?id=2. Field Marshal Jan SmutsJan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
noted during the opening ceremonies that the facility would be used for the area's black population after the war. In 1947 King George VI visited and presented medals to the troops there. From this start grew Baragwanath Hospital (as it became known after 1948), reputedly the world's largest hospital. In 1997 another name change followed, with the sprawling facility now known as Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in honour of the African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
leader who was assassinated in 1993 by extremists.
The name Baragwanath
Baragwanath
Baragwanath is a Cornish language surname originating in west Cornwall in the UK. As a result of emigration members of the Baragwanath family can now be found in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand...
is of Cornish language
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
origin, meaning "wheaten bread."
Daily admissions
More than two thousand patients check in to the hospital daily and nearly half of them are HIV positive .External links
- University of Witwatersrand.
- Just Another Day at the World's Biggest Hospital on NPR's All Things Considered, December 1, 2003. Includes an audio report and a flash presentation.
- Baragwanath History in South Africa: The Baragwanath family history in South Africa.
- 24 hours of trauma TV documentary on the trauma unit by Aljazeera English. January 9 2009.
26.262438°N 27.93967°W