Sydney Eye Hospital

We are here to support Australia’s first hospital

Sydney Eye Hospital is the only state-wide facility for eye diseases, with cataract surgery being the most common elective procedure in Australia, meaning treatment for those undergoing eye surgery is a key priority.

About the hospital

The hospital offers a full ophthalmology service in Glaucoma, Uveitis, Vitreoretinal, Medical Retina, Cornea, Strabismus, Oncology, Neuro-ophthalmology.

With increasing demand for our specialist hospital, the delivery of quality healthcare and the support provided by Sydney Eye Hospital Foundation is more important than ever. Our hospital is planning for:

  • 10% population growth over the next ten years
  • An ageing population with 30% growth in people aged over 70 years forecasted over the next ten years
  • Increasing demand for services with 24% increase in hospital admissions
  • Disadvantaged communities still representing a much higher proportion of potentially preventable hospital admissions

New strategies, enhancements to care and the ongoing COVID-19 response has seen Sydney’s oldest hospital campus rise to meet many challenges in recent years.

Healthcare priorities include improving equity and delivering accessible and evidenced based care that is digitally enabled and underpinned by research. Fundamental to this is the expertise and wellbeing of our people and the programs that support them.

History

Australia’s first hospital, now Sydney and Sydney Eye Hospital, is a quaternary referral unit for eye diseases, providing surgical and medical management of vitro-retinal, corneal, glaucoma, oculoplastic, uveitis and oculo-oncology conditions.

Sydney Eye Hospital, established in 1878, as a ward known as the “eye beds” in the Rum Hospital, which was founded with the settlement of the New South Wales colony in 1788. The Rum Hospital was named Sydney Hospital in 1881 and was rebuilt on Macquarie Street in 1894.

Sydney Hospital is the birthplace of Australian nursing, having trained thousands of nurses in the ‘Nightingale’ system, introduced to Australia by Lucy Osburn in 1868. Lucy Osburn and five probationer nurses, all trained in the Nightingale School attached to Thomas’ Hospital in London. The Nightingale Wing, remaining the oldest building on the hospital’s Macquarie Street site.

The Eye Hospital operated off-site from 1882 until its return to Macquarie Street in 1996 when the hospital was duly renamed Sydney / Sydney Eye Hospital within South East Sydney Local Health District (NSW Government).

Australia’s First Hospital by Caroline Wilkinson

Australia’s first hospital has never closed its doors and is a landmark heritage site with a rich history. As a volunteer guide for over 25 years, Caroline has shared the hospital’s story with fascinated visitors, now compiled in Australia’s First Hospital.

The book captures the history and the passionate and dedicated stories of the people, including the birthplace of Australian nursing, to the tireless volunteers and Sydney Eye Hospital Foundation plus the famous Il Porcellino wild boar sculpture on Macquarie Street.

The soft cover picture book includes drawings by artist Simon Fieldhouse and all proceeds raise funds for Friends of Sydney Hospital (FOSH).

Buy online for delivery Australia wide or pick up from the Sydney Eye Hospital Foundation office – Centre Block, Sydney and Sydney Eye Hospital, 8 Macquarie Street, Sydney NSW 2001.

Meet the staff

Support our vision to save yours.