– 150 years of history at The Royal Children’s Hospital –
A concise and chronological record of the rich and diverse 150-year history of The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH).
Please feel free to scroll through all 150 years or easily filter information via categories or tags.
The historical images have been sourced from the RCH Archives and Collections, unless stated otherwise.
Images have been chosen to illustrate the subject matter and may not necessarily reflect the date of the event.
The RCH has produced such an immense amount of groundbreaking achievements and we cannot assume to have captured them all here.
Do you think an achievement, person, or event is missing? Please send your suggestion to: archives@rch.org.au. We hope you enjoy exploring!
Showing Events Tagged with: education
1882
Dr Peter Bennie
Dr Bennie was appointed an honorary position and remained an active member of hospital staff for 36 years. He also lectured in medicine at the University of Melbourne.
1886
Nurse Rose Vaughan
Vaughan trained at the Children’s and her training notes still exist today.
Image credit: Alvin Aquino
1887
Nurse Training School Officially Recognised
Training has long been an important facet of the hospital’s operations, especially in the early years when paediatric care was still developing as a specialty discipline.
1888
Dr Richard Stawell
Appointed as resident, then honorary staff member from 1893, Stawell retained a position at the hospital until 1914. He was a highly regarded teacher who attracted many medical students to the hospital.
1889
Nurse Training Given an Overhaul
Formal lectures and examinations were introduced, with badges and certificates awarded to successful trainees.
1900
Formal Ties Created With the University of Melbourne
Dr William Snowball joined the faculty of medicine. It soon became compulsory for medical students to complete some paediatric training at the hospital.
Image courtesy of the Medical History Museum, University of Melbourne.
1922
Dr Robert Southby OBE
Beginning as a junior resident, Southby became medical superintendent in 1924. He became lecturer in paediatrics in 1948 and remained involved in paediatrics until his death in 1991.
1957
Development of a Postgraduate Course in Paediatric Nursing
1969
The Royal Children’s Hospital School
The school was first established as an annex to The Children's Orthopaedic Hospital. When the long-term patients moved to Parkville in 1971, the school did, too. Now known as the RCH Education Institute, the department keeps patients connected to learning.
1978
Dr Max Robinson AM
Appointed professor at the University of Melbourne, Robinson introduced formal clinical exams.
1982
Educational Resource Centre
Led by Lynda Stephens, photographers, film makers, designers and illustrators began a program of creating educational and entertaining content used by the hospital and clinics state-wide.
1983
Professor Peter Phelan AM
Phelan was installed as professor of paediatrics at the University of Melbourne. Revision of the paediatric curriculum allowed increased specialisation in paediatrics.
1987
End of Hospital-run Nurse Training
Last students graduated from the school of nursing run by the hospital.
1996
The University of Melbourne School of Graduate Nursing Established
Professorial Chair of Child Health Nursing based at the RCH.
