The Hospital of San Juan de Dios in Arequipa

Abstract

Documented history of the hospital of Arequipa, founded by the Cabildo (town council) in 1559 due to the need to care for poor Spaniards and Indians. The author details the initial administration by stewards appointed by the Cabildo and the subsequent transfer to the order of San Juan de Dios in 1664, who notably improved the service and infrastructure. Prominent figures of the order are mentioned, such as Friar Pedro Araujo and Friar Francisco Rivera. Finally, the extinction of the religious order after the independence (1826) and the transfer of administration to the Welfare Society and the Sisters of Charity in 1871 is recounted.