Beth Israel Hospital (Boston, Mass. : 1916-1996)

Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts

In 1916, the Jewish community of Boston established Beth Israel Hospital on Townsend Street in Roxbury to provide health care to immigrants in the area. Although accessible to everyone, the hospital provided Yiddish-speaking services for Eastern European Jewish immigrants and served kosher food, as well as conducted Jewish religious services. The 45-bed hospital had several departments, including Medical Services, Surgical Services and Special Services, which encompassed laryngology, neurology, genitourinary surgery, gynecology, ophthalmologic surgery, pathology, serology-bacteriology, dermatology, radiology, anesthesiology and dental surgery. A school of nursing opened in 1918 to encourage Jewish women to enter the profession, and was later followed by a social services department in 1920. The hospital also opened and administered outpatient clinics for the treatment of diabetes and tuberculosis, and care of babies.

In 1928 the hospital entered into a teaching agreement with Harvard Medical School, Tufts University, and Simmons College. Shortly thereafter, the hospital moved to its current location in the Longwood area of Boston and expanded to a 220-bed operation. During 1935-1936, at the height of the Depression, Beth Israel spent 1.5 million dollars in free patient care and was only one of two local hospitals to offer health care to people on welfare.

In 1996, Beth Israel Hospital merged with Deaconess Medical Center and became Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

Footnote 1 Information for this historical sketch is from the following resources: "The History of BIDMC." Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. August 9, 2010 ( http://www.bidmc.org/AboutBIDMC/TheHistoryofBIDMC.aspx ) Materials from the collection.