The University of Santo Tomas Hospital (USTH) celebrates 77 years of dedicated service, excellent education and cutting-edge research in Medicine and other health-allied disciplines. The USTH first opened its doors on February 15, 1945 with the inauguration of the Charity Division (popularly known now as the UST Hospital Clinical Division). The following year, on March 7, 1946, the Private Divisi
on was opened, marked by a propitious event: the very first patient admitted was a woman who successfully gave birth to a healthy baby girl. As the training hospital of students of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, the USTH can actually boast of a glorious history spanning four centuries. Its precursor, the San Juan de Dios Hospital in Intramuros, was founded in 1577, and after three centuries of uninterrupted operation, it was declared by King Alfonso of Spain on October 29, 1875, as the training ground of students of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery. Later, it also became the training hospital of students of the UST College of Nursing and the UST College of Rehabilitation Sciences. During its 77 years of existence, the USTH has ministered to the sick who sought healing in its two branches: the Private Division (where paying patients are diagnosed and treated accordingly), and the Clinical Division (where indigent patients are confined). Practically all of the income from the former is used to subsidize the expenses of the latter, a veritable proof that, in the USTH, healing is a mission and a vocation, not a lucrative business. The Clinical Division maintains an Ambulatory Care Services (ACS) Department (formerly known as Out-Patient Department – OPD), a multispecialty unit that offers indigent patients free consultation services in the fields of Medicine, Surgery, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Family Medicine, Neurology and Psychiatry, Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Otorhinolaryngology, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and Pain Management. Furthermore, it serves as a referral center for various patients with diverse medical conditions and problems. It also runs clinics in the different subspecialties of Medicine and Surgery: Cardiology, Interventional Cardiology, Pulmonary Medicine, Nephrology, Endocrinology and Diabetes, Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Infectious Disease, Rheumatology and Immunology, Oncology, Hematology, Orthopedic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Urological Surgery, and Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. Patient education programs as well as minor therapeutic and ambulatory surgical interventions for indigent patients are also made available in the unit. For the last 11 years (2006-2016) of existence, the ACS has served 1,346,300 approximately 400 to 500 patients daily. The USTH has developed many other programs that promote the health of the community it serves. Through the UST Hospital Outreach and Patient Education (UST HOPE) program, it continues to fulfill its mission of delivering affordable, reliable, and holistic health care services to all, through its corps of competent, ethical, and compassionate medical professionals. It also continues to offer free medical and ancillary services, patient education, and other beneficial community projects and programs. The USTH believes that providing charitable service, especially to indigent patients, is a duty inherent to being human. For us who belong to the USTH community, we consider it a blessing to have the opportunity to heal and touch someone’s life. Through this, we hope to make a difference in the world. The USTH, the base hospital and training facility of students of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, the UST College of Nursing, and the UST College of Rehabilitation Sciences, is a level III, tertiary care center within the campus of the University of Santo Tomas, the oldest University in Asia. As a premier institution of learning in the Philippines, excellence in training, education and research is central in the vision and mission of the USTH. The USTH provides quality instruction and research in the health professions, through its 20 accredited Residency Training Programs, 33 accredited Fellowship Subspecialty Programs, a certified Postgraduate Internship curriculum, and a reputable record of scientific research, innovation, and compassionate medical practice. It aims to be the leading healthcare institution in service and scientific breakthroughs, and molding tomorrow’s physicians into professionals imbued with knowledge, skills, and ethical values. At the USTH, we seek to provide patients with the best diagnosis and treatment, done with utmost compassion and care.
