Published on : 09/10/2024

On October 9, 1911, Hong Kong's Kwong Wah Hospital (廣華醫院) was established.

Kwong Wah Hospital was the first hospital on the Kowloon Peninsula. The name "Kwong Wah" indicates that it primarily serves Cantonese Chinese people.

At the start of the 20th century, there were no hospital facilities in the Kowloon area north of Victoria Harbour. Patients had to travel to Hong Kong Island for treatment.

In 1907, there were voices suggesting the establishment of a Chinese hospital in Yau Ma Tei to serve the rapidly growing population in Kowloon and the New Territories.

Subsequently, the British Hong Kong Government passed the "1911 Expansion of Tung Wah Hospital Ordinance" Section 38 on August 24, 1911, and allocated 123,500 square feet of land in Yau Ma Tei to construct the hospital.

It also granted 30,000 HK dollars for development funds and a yearly subsidy of 6,500 for operational expenses.

After five years, Kwong Wah Hospital was eventually completed at a cost of 139,000 HK dollars, and its inauguration ceremony was presided over by Sir Frederick Lugard, the then Governor of Hong Kong.