History of UNIOSUN Teaching Hospital, Osogbo

The Hospital that metamorphosed to a Teaching Hospital was founded in 1928 by the British Colonial Administration as a 15-bed "African Hospital" primarily to cater for the medical needs of black people in the area, then known as Osun and Ife/Ijesha medical areas.

Dr. Moore was the first Medical Doctor in charge of the hospital in 1928. By 1934, Dr. Henry Doherty became the first indigenous Medical Doctor to head the hospital. A former Federal Minister of Health in Tafawa Balewa administration, Dr. M. A. Majekodunmi, also headed the hospital from 1944-1946. Dr. D. A. Laosebikan served the longest time as the Principal Medical Officer in charge of the Hospital from 1978-1989.

The nation-wide workers' strike of 1945 forced the Colonial Administration to relax its apartheid policy of discrimination between whites and blacks. Consequently, the Osogbo "African Hospital" was renamed "General Hospital" like other sister institutions throughout the country then.

By the late 1960s, specialist medical care was already being carried out by specialist staff. This specialist status of the hospital has so remained till April 1998. With the creation of Osun State, the Hospital was upgraded to a State Hospital.

In 1993, Osun State Government acquired a private medical facility i.e. Mercyland Hospital, located some 3 kilometers away from the State Hospital, Estate Area in Egbedore Local Government Area, to become an Annex of the State Hospital, Osogbo.

The General and Mercyland Hospitals were released to LAUTECH for the purpose of establishing a Teaching Hospital by an edict promulgated by Osun State Military Administrator, Lt. Col. Anthony Obi, the visitor to the university. The edict was gazetted on 25th September, 1997 (No. 3 Vol. 9; Osun State Notice No. 24) which was amended by Edict No. 2 of 1999 Osun State, dated 25th March, 1999.

The pioneer Hospital Management Board was inaugurated on 29th July, 1999 by the Executive Governors of Oyo and Osun States, Alhaji Lam Adesina and Chief Bisi Akande respectively in Osogbo.

There are two wings of the Teaching Hospital -the General Hospital and Mercyland Hospital wings. Clinical programmes for the first set of medical students began on 27th April, 1998.