The Bristol Royal Infirmary, also known as the BRI, is a large

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

situated in the centre of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

, England. It has links with the nearby

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

and the Faculty of Health and Social Care at the

University of the West of England The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a public research university, located in and around Bristol, England. The institution was know as the Bristol Polytechnic in 1970; it received university status in 1992 and ...

, also in Bristol. The BRI is one of nine hospitals operated by the University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust. It is located on the same site the

Bristol Royal Hospital for Children Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, also known as the Bristol Children's Hospital, is a Children's hospital, paediatric hospital in Bristol and the only paediatric major trauma centre in South West England. The hospital is part of the Universit ...

, Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre, and Bristol Heart Institute (BHI). The Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre has 49 beds and the Bristol Heart Institute has 107, which are not included in the main hospital's total.

History

Early history

The Bristol Royal Infirmary was founded by public subscription in 1735, making it one of the oldest infirmaries in the United Kingdom. In 1904, Sir George White, who gave Bristol its first electric

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

way service and established what was to become the

Bristol Aeroplane Company The Bristol Aeroplane Company, originally the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, was both one of the first and one of the most important British aviation companies, designing and manufacturing both airframes and aircraft engines. Notable a ...

, saved the hospital from debts of over £15,000 by increasing the number of subscribed donors and planning a fundraising carnival at

Bristol Zoo Bristol Zoo was a zoo in the city of Bristol in South West England. The zoo's stated mission was to "maintain and defend” biodiversity through breeding endangered species, conserving threatened species and habitats and promoting a wider unders ...

. White was appointed president of the hospital in 1906. Recognising the need to modernise the hospital building to keep up with innovations in science and medicine, he established a £50,000 fund for a new hospital building. This led to the construction of the

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second chil ...

Memorial Wing which was designed by

Charles Holden Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

and completed in 1912. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, the Memorial Wing at Bristol Royal Infirmary together with Southmead Hospital were requisitioned by the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

to create the 2nd Southern General Hospital, a facility for the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps ...

to treat military casualties.

Post-war development

Geoffrey Tovey Geoffrey Harold Tovey (29 May 1916 – 19 December 2001) was a medical doctor whose scientific contributions in the field of haematology brought him an international reputation. He was also an expert in serology and founder and Director of the UK ...

, serologist and founder of the UK Transplant Service, worked at the hospital shortly before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. The hospital became part of the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

in 1948 and was greatly extended in the 1960s. The Queen's Building extension opened in 1972, the Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre, located behind the main hospital building, opened in 1971 and the adjacent Bristol Heart Institute opened in 2009.

Bristol heart scandal

The Bristol heart scandal, which resulted in the deaths of a number of babies and young children during heart surgery (1984–1995) led to the Kennedy Report into

paediatric Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

cardiac surgical services at the hospital. The report, which was published in 2001, led to greater emphasis on clinical governance within the NHS and the publication of the performance ratings of individual heart surgeons.

Redevelopment

In April 2011, the trust board approved an £80 million redevelopment of the hospital, consisting of a new ward block on Terrell Street behind the hospital, the refurbishment of the Queen's building, the conversion of wards in the King Edward building and the decommissioning of the Old Building. In September 2011, it was announced that

Laing O'Rourke Laing O'Rourke is a multinational construction company headquartered in Dartford, England. It was founded in 1978 by Ray O'Rourke. It is the largest privately owned construction company in the United Kingdom. History The company was founded by ...

had signed a contract to redevelop the hospital and build an extension to the

. The redevelopment project included purpose-built medical and elderly care admissions units, a state-of-the-art intensive care unit, a surgical floor and a helipad on the roof of the Queen's Building. The redevelopment also included building a new Welcome Centre at the main entrance of the hospital and a new facade for the Queen's building, once voted one of the ugliest buildings in Bristol, designed by the Spanish firm Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos. Construction began on the new hospital ward block in March 2011, with the demolition of buildings on Terrell Street. The newly completed Welcome Centre was opened to the public in December 2013. In May 2014, the helipad became fully operational and started receiving air ambulances from Bristol and the surrounding area, speeding up transfer times for patients who were being airlifted to the hospital. The HELP Appeal supported the construction of the helipad with a grant of £500,000.

In popular culture

Holby City Hospital, in the fictional city of Holby, which appears in the BBC medical dramas '' Casualty'' and ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', and ...

'', is based on the BRI.

References

Sources

External links

* {{authority control University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust NHS hospitals in England Teaching hospitals in England Hospitals in Bristol 1735 establishments in England Hospitals established in the 1730s Buildings by Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos Bristol Royal Infirmary King Edward VII Memorial Wing Physicians of the Bristol Royal Infirmary