Mildmay Mission Hospital is a specialist voluntary charitable hospital and rehabilitation centre in Bethnal Green located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and is close to Shoreditch in the London Borough of Hackney. It is the only hospital in the United Kingdom specialising in the care of HIV/AIDS and related conditions, and the only one in Europe specialising in the treatment and rehabilitation of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. The first Mildmay Hospital was established in 1877 by Catherine Pennefather and a group of deaconesses of the Mildmay Mission in a warehouse near Shoreditch Church. In 1892 it moved to purpose-built premises on Austin Street, Bethnal Green, to serve the population of the nearby Old Nichol rookery and, later, the Boundary Estate. It was incorporated into the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948 and continued to operate as a cottage hospital until 1982, when it was closed as part of a broader administrative reorganisation of the NHS. After extensive campaigning by Helen Taylor Thompson and others, in 1985 Mildmay was reopened, first as a nursing home and then as an AIDS hospice; in 1988, it resumed operations in new premises at Tabernacle Gardens, off Hackney Road, and has remained primarily dedicated to HIV/AIDS care since. Further redevelopment of the area led to demolition of the 1980s building, and in 2014 the hospital moved into its latest premises at the same location. During the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, Mildmay became the primary referral unit for homeless Londoners with COVID-19 requiring non-intensive inpatient care. After renewed threats of closure in 2020, its services were expanded to non-HIV care pathways, including step-down care for rough sleepers recovering from illness or injury, post-detoxification care (since 2022), and general neurorehabilitation (since 2023). Since its reopening, Mildmay has operated as an independent organisation which provides healthcare and social services under contract to the NHS. Approximately 80% of its expenses are funded by the NHS, with the remainder covered by donations and fundraising activities. As a tertiary referral hospital, Mildmay has no A&E department and, since the COVID-19 pandemic, has offered no outpatient or day-hospital services. Referrals for inpatient admission are accepted from anywhere in the UK. As of 2024, Mildmay is rated "Good" by the Care Quality Commission (down from "Outstanding" in 2017). Its CEO is Geoff Coleman, and its president is Lord Fowler, former Secretary of State for Health and Social Services and Speaker of the House of Lords.
Early history
Mildmay Mission Hospital was opened in 1877 by Catherine Pennefather (widow of Reverend William Pennefather) and a group of other so-called Mildmay Deaconesses in a disused warehouse behind St Leonard's Church, Shoreditch, in the heart of the Old Nichol rookery. With 27 beds, the staff consisted of a doctor and three nurses, as well as a number of Deaconesses who trained as nurses from 1883 onwards. Despite its strong evangelical Christian orientation, patients were admitted regardless of religion, and the hospital often treated members of the East End's Jewish community. In 1886, Maud Cattell joined Mildmay Mission and was trained as a nurse by Pennefather; she would ultimately run the hospital for the next 30 years. In anticipation of slum clearances by the London County Council, construction was begun in 1890 of a new, larger hospital on Austin Street off Hackney Road; it opened in 1892 with 50 beds and additional staff. Pennefather died shortly afterwards, in January 1893. The First World War posed particular challenges, and in 1916 the hospital closed for the first time due to drainage issues. With assistance from Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, Cattell was able to reopen the facilities partially, but in 1917 the hospital was overwhelmed with casualties from the Gotha raids. By 1918 Cattell was running the hospital alone, in charge of not only nursing but also administrative activities (the administrative section of Mildmay Mission had closed earlier that year) and even cooking patients' meals. In August 1919, Cattell appointed Dora Woodhouse as her replacement and retired from Mildmay. With the establishment of the National Health Service in 1948, Mildmay Hospital was incorporated into the NHS as part of the North East Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board. Kenneth Buxton became the medical superintendent in 1954 and oversaw significant work on the hospital premises, including the construction of a residential wing for the nursing staff and a 1965 extension inaugurated by Princess Alexandra; he held the position until 1974, when the hospital was transferred to the Tower Hamlets Health District. Mildmay continued to serve the community as a general cottage hospital until 1982.
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