Patients and Health Personnel of San Gallicano Hospital in Rome in the XVIII Century

Abstract

1725 is the year of birth of the San Gallicano hospital in Rome and it was immediately equipped with an organizational system that made it possible to make it a modern hospital. This study analyzes three fundamental documents for the hospital, i.e. the Foundation Bull of 1726, the Hospital Regulations of 1731 and the Hospital Establishments of 1743. In the 18th century the sanitary nature of the hospital was affirmed, specifying the type of diseases treated in the charity. The contemporary testimonies have made it possible to reconstruct the organizational structure of the health personnel made up of religious and lay people, whose professional roles were governed by strict rules concerning juridical, moral, behavioral and health issues. The documentary and archival material used in the research shows the progressive evolution of the San Gallicano hospital, allowing us to understand how it became the first dermatological hospital in Europe.