St. Martha’s Regional Hospital

Key Dates in the History of St. Martha’s Regional Hospital

1906: Six-bed cottage hospital opens.

1911: Harris House is purchased and the hospital expands to 20 beds. The hospital is now on the grounds of its permanent home.

1926: A 100-bed “state-of-the-art” brick hospital opens. St. Martha’s School of Nursing becomes affiliated with the St. Francis Xavier University permitting nursing students to obtain their Bachelor of Science Degree.

1932: The province’s Department of Health builds a 50-bed unit as an annex to combat TB.

1951: The new hospital wing was opened, bringing the bed capacity to 203.

1957: The Department of Health closes the TB unit.

1989: A new 175-bed building is built using funds raised through private fundraising efforts and government funds. The old hospital is demolished.

1990: The hospital restructures to house 75 beds as a result of cutbacks in government funding and a change in the way hospital services are delivered.

1996: The Eastern Regional Health Board assumes responsibility of the facility from the Sisters of St. Martha. A Mission Assurance Agreement is signed by the Sisters of St. Martha, the Eastern Regional Health Board and the Department of Health, ensuring the Catholic identity of St. Martha’s Regional Hospital.

2001: The Eastern Regional Health Board is dissolved and district health authorities are formed. The Guysborough Antigonish Strait Health Authority assumes responsibility for the administration of the hospital.

2015: The Guysborough Antigonish Strait Health Authority is dissolved and all health authorities province wide are amalgamated under one provincially controlled system called the Nova Scotia Health Authority.