Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital


The Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital is a specialist otolaryngologic hospital located on Gray's Inn Road in London, England, and a part of the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Established in 1874, its motto is Audient surdi mutique loquentur. All outpatient services moved to the Royal National ENT and Eastman Dental Hospitals, Huntley Street in October 2019. Theatres, wards, sleep diagnostics and allergy daycase services continue to be provided from the Gray's Inn Road site.

History

The hospital was founded in 1874 by Lennox Browne, Llewellyn Thomas, Alfred Hutton, George Wallis and Ernest Turner. The hospital initially opened in Manchester Street, but demand for its services was such that new premises were acquired on Gray's Inn Road: the foundation stone was laid by Adelina Patti, a leading singer, in 1875. The new facility opened, as the Central London Throat Nose and Ear Hospital, in 1877. A new wing was opened by Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll in 1906. She also laid the foundation stone for the Princess Louise Wing which was built between 1928 and 1929.
In January 1942 the hospital was amalgamated with the Hospital for Diseases of the Throat in Golden Square to form The Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital. It then joined the National Health Service in 1948.
In April 1991 the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust, comprising the Royal Free Hospital and the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital, became one of the first NHS trusts established under the provisions of the NHS and Community Care Act 1990.
In April 2012, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust took over management of the hospital from the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust.
In October 2019 UCLH opened a new hospital in Huntley Street to house the Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital and the Eastman Dental Hospital and many departments moved there. The wards, operating theatre, sleep unit, and the UCL Ear Institute & Action on Hearing Loss Library will remain at Gray's Inn Road until September/October 2020.
There are two notable pieces of art in the entrance: on the left there is a plaque commemorating the Royal Ear Hospital as a memorial to the parents of Geoffrey Duveen, by Felix Joubert, and on the right there is a carving of St. Blaise, by Cecil Thomas.

Services

The following services are currently provided at the new Royal National ENT and Eastman Dental Hospitals on Huntley Street:
Together with the UCL Ear Institute, which it is located adjacent to, the hospital constitutes the largest centre for audiological research in Europe.

Notable people