Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital

Not to be confused with Jose Fabella Memorial School.

Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital, the National Maternity Hospital, is a maternal and newborn tertiary hospital located in Santa Cruz, Manila in the Philippines. It also houses the Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital School of Midwifery, an institute recognized by the Professional Regulation Commission in the Midwife Licensure Examinations for its performance. In 2015, the World Health Organization recognized the hospital "as a role model of the World Health Organization-Western Pacific Region Office for its essential newborn care programs, which have been proven to reduce infant morbidity and mortality".^[1]

Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital
Department of Health
Facade of the Hospital
Location in Metro Manila
Geography
Location	Lope de Vega Street, Santa Cruz, Manila, Philippines
Coordinates	14°36′22″N 120°59′03″E
Organization
Funding	Public hospital
Type	Specialist
Services
Beds	700
Speciality	Obstetrics Gynecology Pediatrics
Public transit access	Doroteo Jose  10  17  Doroteo Jose
History
Opened	November 9, 1920; 104 years ago (1920-11-09)
Links
Website	fabella.doh.gov.ph
Lists	Hospitals in the Philippines

History

Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital started as a six-bed clinic called the "Maternity House" on November 9, 1920. The clinic, which was founded by then Chairman of Public Welfare Board, Jose F. Fabella, was originally located along Isabel Street in Sampaloc, Manila. It was taken over by the Public Welfare Commission the following year. In 1922, the clinic added a pediatric section and a school of midwifery. In 1931, the control of the clinic was handed over to the Bureau of Health and in 1947 to the Bureau of Hospitals. In 1951, the clinic moved to its present location at the Old Bilibid compound at Santa Cruz, Manila.^[2]

Unlike other Philippine government hospitals, there was no legislative act that permitted the creation of the hospital. Its present location was only legitimized by Administrative Order no. 140, which was issued by President Manuel L. Quezon on February 19, 1941. The Administrative Order recommended that the Bilibid Hospital be used as a maternity hospital. On June 15, 1968, the Maternity and Children's Hospital was renamed Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in honor of the hospital's founder. To date, it has an authorized bed capacity of 700.

The Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital School of Midwifery is housed within the hospital. It is a government institution managed by the Department of Health.

The hospital is considered a "baby factory" and a "ground zero for the Philippines’ overpopulation crisis." As a result, there are not enough beds for patients, so 4 to 5 mothers share one bed.^[3] The hospital also suffers from extreme heat during the summer.^[4]