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Hospital Ancient Greek ruins The Hotel Dieu in Lyon, France, featuring a large domed roof with a cross on top, classical stone facade, and rows of tall windows along the building. Engraving of Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes wearing a dark cap, a fur-trimmed coat, and a neatly trimmed beard, facing slightly to the viewer's left. National Health Service A red ICU crash cart with a defibrillator and medical supplies sits in a hospital hallway, ready for emergency use. A patient's arm rests on a padded support with tubes inserted for dialysis, connected to a dialysis machine with visible blood lines and medical equipment. A pharmacist in a white coat holds a paper list while searching shelves filled with medication boxes behind the pharmacy counter. Cornell University Tuberculosis
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Hagia Sophia. Istanbul, Turkey. Constantinople. Church of the Holy Wisdom. Church of the Divine Wisdom. Mosque.
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Hospital
Hospital Riverside campus of The Ottawa Hospital, Ottawa, Ont., Can.

hospital

medicine
Written by
Pamela C. Fralick
President and CEO, Canadian Healthcare Association.
Pamela C. FralickAll
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Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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•History

hospital, an institution that is built, staffed, and equipped for the diagnosis of disease, for the treatment of the sick and injured, and for their housing during this process. The modern hospital also often serves as a center for research and teaching. To better serve the wide-ranging needs of the community, the modern hospital often has outpatient facilities, as well as emergency, psychiatric, and rehabilitation services. In addition, “bedless hospitals” provide strictly ambulatory (outpatient) care...

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