On 9 March 1920, St Benedict’s Hospital in Malvern — Melbourne’s first private hospital run by the Sisters of Mercy — was officially opened and blessed by the Most Reverend Daniel Mannix, Archbishop of Melbourne.
The Sisters bravely and determinedly established the hospital in the wake of the deadly pneumonic flu epidemic, also known as the ‘Spanish flu’, which began in 1918.
St Benedict’s was housed in a rambling Victorian mansion, formerly known as Coonil House, surrounded by a vast expanse of established gardens. The Sisters bought the property in 1919 for £25,000 and converted it to a stately and comfortable hospital, accommodating 70 patients and an operating theatre.
Coonil House in Malvern, which became the site of St Benedict’s Hospital.
On the day the Archbishop came to bless the building, the leadlight panel above the front door caught his eye. It featured the word ‘Pax’, which is Latin for ‘peace’, to illuminate the Sisters’ desire that all patients recovering at St Benedict’s “would be restored to peace in mind and body.” (1)
The Sisters’ holistic, compassionate and person-centred approach to care has continued to shape Mercy Health’s mission over the past century as the organisation has established health services and aged care across Australia.
In this centenary year, Mercy Health is celebrating important milestones and honouring the many people who have and continue to work tirelessly to provide exceptional care and bring God’s mercy to those in need.
We gratefully acknowledge the role that the Good Shepherd Sisters, Family Care Sisters (Grey Sisters), Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters and the Knights of the Southern Cross (Victoria) have played in our mission to bring God’s mercy to those in need.
1. Priestley, S 1990. Melbourne’s Mercy: A History of Mercy Private Hospital, Hyland House Publishing, Melbourne, p. 27.
100 years of Mercy Health
9 March 1920 — St Benedict’s Hospital opens in Malvern, Melbourne’s first private hospital run by the Sisters of Mercy. The hospital’s Mother Superior, Mother Francis Hannigan, promoted holistic healthcare — fresh air, good diet and exercise.
Mother Francis Hanigan was the Mother Superior at St Benedict’s.
2 December 1934 — Mercy Private Hospital in Grey Street, East Melbourne, opens. The hospital is blessed by His Eminence Cardinal Joseph McRory in front of an audience of 6000 people, including Prime Minister Joseph Lyons.
Designed by Architect Arthur Stephenson, the impressive Art Deco style hospital overlooked the Fitzroy Gardens and Melbourne central business district from Clarendon Street. Notably, the building featured 101 beds, a state-of-the-art operating theatre, a sterilisation facility, laundry, kitchen and chapel.
The opening of Mercy Private Hospital.
The impressive Art Deco facade of Mercy Private Hospital.
February 1936 — Mercy Private Hospital cements its reputation as an exemplary general nurse training school.
Nurses from Mercy Private Hospital, circa 1940.
1957 — Mercy Hospital Albury is opened by Cardinal Norman Gilroy. The five-storey, 90-bed, general hospital, and offers medical, surgical, maternity, paediatric care and a nurse training school.
11 February 1971 — Mercy Maternity Hospital opens in East Melbourne after two decades of planning and campaigning for funds, including a Miss Mercy Quest, milk runs and society events.
Mercy nurses inspect the architectural model for the new Mercy Maternity Hospital, circa 1970.
Australian entertainer Graham Kennedy gets behind Mercy’s fundraising activities.
15 March 1971 — Mercy Maternity Hospital opens to public patients.
The outside of Mercy Maternity Building from Fitzroy Gardens.
1982 — The Sisters of Mercy establish the Mercy Hospice in Sunshine to provide specialist palliative care for patients in their home. This would eventually become today’s Mercy Palliative Care.
1991 — On its 20th anniversary, Mercy Maternity Hospital changes its name to Mercy Hospital for Women.
20 February 1994 — Mercy Health expands its services to the outer western suburbs of Melbourne by opening Werribee Mercy Hospital. In the early 1990s, the population of Wyndham had exceeded 60,000 and the local community needed a general hospital to meet its ever-expanding healthcare needs.
Werribee Mercy Hospital in 1994.
1997 — Mercy Health expands into aged care and mental health.
A number of Mercy Health Residential Aged Care homes have introduced intergenerational programs, which are a great success with both residents and children.
Mercy Mental Health client tends to the vegetable garden at the Community Care Unit in Werribee.
1998 — The O’Connell Family Centre in Canterbury, formerly run by the Grey Sisters, comes under Mercy Health’s management.
May 2005 — Mercy Hospital for Women moves from its East Melbourne address to a new home adjoining the Austin Hospital in Heidelberg.
Mercy Hospital for Women in Heidelberg.
2007 — Mercy Health expands into home and community care.
Home Care Services client Tracy Stonehouse.
May 2009 — Mercy Health Foundation is established, formalising its long tradition of philanthropic fundraising.
Over the years, Mercy Health Foundation has raised funds for all manner of causes. Its current Autumn Appeal is raising money for the Mercy Health Breastmilk Bank, which provides pasteurised donor breastmilk for small and sick babies in neonatal intensive care units.
2014 — Mercy Health extends its aged care services to Western Australia.
August 2018 — Werribee Mercy Hospital opens an extension to its Catherine McAuley Centre, bringing state-of-the-art intensive care to the westerns suburbs of Melbourne. The expansion includes 56 new inpatient beds, six new operating theatres, a Central Sterilising Department, a state-of-the-art Intensive Care Unit with eight beds and a wellness room and gardens to give patients and families a break from the clinical environment.
The extension to the Catherine McAuley Centre at Werribee Mercy Hospital.
Some of the team at Werribee Mercy Hospital’s state-of-the-art Intensive Care Unit.
You are invited to celebrate Mercy Health’s 100-year milestone by sharing your mercy memories and stories on our centenary website: mercyhealth100years.com.au
Last reviewed April 24, 2020.