academic year 2024/25

Academic Coordinator: Nicolò Nicoli Aldini

Period: First semester

Duration: 14 hours

Program:

• Introduction to the Course

  • The history of hospital care in the context of the history of medicine and society: perspectives and study paths.
  • Bibliographic references and web resources.

• Places of Care in the Ancient World

  • Asclepieia and Valetudinaria in the Greek world and Roman civilization.

• Hospitality in Early Christian and Medieval Times

  • Xenodochia, Claustrum Infimorum, Hospitum: the etymology of a name centered on care and hospitality.
  • Characteristics and transformations of hospital care from the Early to the Late Middle Ages.
  • Healing and caring for the person.

• The Birth of Universities and Their Relationship with Hospitals

• Hospital Transformations from the 15th to the 17th Century

  • The "Spedal Grande" and major hospitals.
  • The hospital for the incurable.

• Hospital Reforms from the Enlightenment to the Early 19th Century

  • The rise of the anatomo-clinical method in medicine and its impact on hospital organization.

• 19th and 20th Centuries

  • Repurposing of ancient buildings for hospital use.
  • Pavilion-style hospitals and new hospital architecture.
  • The operating room, analysis laboratory, and radiology.

• The Emergence of Specialized Hospitals

  • Pediatric hospitals, orthopedic hospitals, and hospitals for skin diseases.
  • Psychiatric patients: between segregation and care.

• 20th-Century Hospitals

  • Monoblock and multiblock hospital structures.

• Current Scenarios and Perspectives in Hospital Organization