Established in 1826, the Coombe Women's Hospital is currently celebrating more than 175 years of caring for women and their new born babies. Today the hospital provides the most extensive health care service in Ireland for mothers and infants, with more than 7,000 babies born every year, with expert care provided for sick and premature babies from all over the country, and with the largest gynaecological service in the country. Today we serve an immediate catchment area with a population of over half a million people.

Since our foundation over one million babies have been born in the hospital. Our story began on October 1770 when Lord Brabazon laid the foundation for a new general hospital in the Coombe area. The hospital, known as The Meath Hospital and County Dublin Infirmary was opened the following year. In 1823 the hospital was bought by Doctor John Kirby and renamed the Coombe Hospital on a site known as Dean Swift's Vineyard in Heytesbury Street.

Fittingly, a woman was responsible for the establishment of the hospital as we know it today. Mrs. Margaret Boyle founded the maternity service in 1826 with a gift of £100, and in 1829 the hospital was brought from Doctor John Kirby and opened as The Coombe Lying-in Hospital. Over the following years, many new developments were undertaken including the opening of the gynaecology ward, the establishment of midwifery training, and the building of a new wing donated by the Guinness family. In 1867 the Coombe Lying-in Hospital was granted a Royal Charter of Incorporation, which gave the hospital its legal status. In 1926 the hospital celebrated its centenary by hosting the first international medical congress to be held in Dublin.

In 1964 the foundation stone of the hospital's current site in Dolphin's Barn was laid by the then Minister for Health, Sean McEntee. The new hospital opened in 1967 has experienced great expansion over the years, including taking responsibility for providing maternity services to St James Hospital patients in 1987.

On December 8, 1993 the hospital was renamed The Coombe Women's Hospital, making it the first named women's hospital in the country. The name change reflects a holistic approach to women and infant health care. Since the mid 1990s, day case surgery has been developed which benefits women and families, acknowledges the busy lives that women lead today, and provides a patient-friendly environment. A post-natal programme incorporating classes with one to one patient consultation and a telephone help line service has also been developed. The relationship with the Guinness family has been maintained with their generous involvement in the refurbishment in 2000 of the hospital's board and conference room - The Guinness Room.

Over the years, many high profile individuals have visited us, including Joseph Lister, the pioneer of antiseptic surgery, who toured the hospital in 1857, Queen Mary who did the rounds in 1911, and former President of Ireland Mary Robinson whom we welcomed in 1998.

Pioneering developments in healthcare, the Coombe Women's Hospital became the first women's Irish healthcare institute to establish its own web site. This has proved to be a valuable information facility for both the medical community and the public in general with over twenty-five thousand hits a month from site visitors as far away as Singapore and Brazil. Under the new Regional Health Authority established in 2000, the Coombe Women's Hospital became the primary maternity and gynaecological service provider for Dublin South West - the largest health area in the country. In 1999, over 13% of Ireland's newest citizens first were born in the Coombe.

Recent demographic research indicates that the demand for the Hospital's services will continue to increase in the foreseeable future. This means that as well as looking back on a history of contribution to the Irish health service, we can equally look forward to a similarly involved and caring future.