The Alfred Hospital

The Alfred, also known as Alfred Hospital or The Alfred Hospital, is a major hospital in Melbourne, Victoria. It is the second oldest hospital in Victoria, and the oldest Melbourne hospital still operating on its original site. It is located at the corner of Commercial and Punt Roads, Prahran, opposite Fawkner Park.

History

Moves were already underway to establish a second hospital when Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, in Australia on a royal visit, was shot in an unsuccessful assassination attempt. The new "Hospital by the Yarra" (as well as Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital) was named for him. It was founded in 1871. In 1957, The Alfred was the first hospital in Australia to place a patient on cardiopulmonary bypass to treat complex cardiac lesions. It is a major teaching hospital affiliated with Monash University.

Services

The Alfred Hospital provides specialty services in the treatment of cancer, asthma, psychiatry, and allergies, in cardiology, and in neurosurgery; houses the largest intensive care unit in Australia; and contains many unique state health facilities, including adult cystic fibrosis services and the only adult burns centre in Victoria and Tasmania. It has always been a leader in offering new treatments and services. The Alfred is Victoria's only Adult Heart and Lung transplantation service and Australia's only Paediatric Lung transplantation service. The hospital is administered by the Metropolitan Health Service Alfred Health. In addition to being one of the two major trauma centres in Victoria, The Alfred has a state of the art helipad, located over Commercial Road.