- Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital
Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital, originally called the "Queens Memorial Hospital", operated from 1904 to its closure in 1996. Perched high on the banks of the
Yarra River at Yarra Bend in the innerMelbourne suburb of Fairfield, it developed an international reputation for the research and treatment of infectious diseases. When it closed, it was the last specificinfectious disease shospital inAustralia .Initially the hospital was devoted to the treatment of patients with fevers. Diseases treated included
typhoid ,diphtheria ,cholera andsmallpox ,polio andscarlet fever , and in its final years, HIV/AIDS became very prominent.A
virology laboratory was established at Fairfield Hospital in 1950 to undertake clinical, diagnostic and research services for the many patients with viral infections. The laboratory was the first to isolatehepatitis A virus , gaining worldwide recognition. The laboratory later became part of the "Macfarlane Burnet Institute for Medical Research and Public Health", and subsequently theBurnet Institute . [Burnet Institute " [http://www.burnet.edu.au/home/general/history History] ", Burnet Institute website, Accessed September 3, 2008]In 1996 the Liberal Government of
Jeff Kennett pursued the rationalisation of hospital services. Despite strong protests, the specialised functions of the hospital were transferred to other hospitals and on 30 June 1996 "Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital" closed down. [Darebin Historical Encyclopedia, " [http://dhe.darebin-libraries.vic.gov.au/encyclopedia.asp?id=352 Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital (1904 - 1996)] " Accessed September 3, 2008]Since closure in 1996 part of the hospital site has been redeveloped and currently operates as the
Victorian Institute of Forensic Psychiatry with theNorthern Melbourne Institute of TAFE (NMIT) also utilising part of the site for its Fairfield campus from 2004.References
* W. K. Anderson, "Fever Hospital. A History of Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital", Melbourne University Publishing, 2002, ISBN 0522849644
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