Leicester Royal Infirmary

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The Leicester Royal Infirmary is a National Health Service hospital in Leicester, England. It is located to the south-west of the city centre. It has Leicester's accident and emergency department, and is part of the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.The hospital was founded in 1771 by Reverend William Watts, with 40 beds. Patients were forced to pay a deposit when they went in; if they went home, the money was repaid; if they died their deposit would be spent on burying them. When first opened, there was no running water, but there was the nearby brewery, which was used to treat the patients. By 1808, the hospital had expanded by 20 beds, holding then 60. In 1808, the first matron was employed at £10 a year; this increased over the years, and many matrons and nurses helped patients recover, by looking after them, and making beds. There are many separate sections in the hospital, named after royal residences in Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Windsor, Balmoral, Osborne, Sandringham and Victoria. The Windsor building was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1993.The hospital merged in April 2000 with Leicester General Hospital and Glenfield Hospital to form University Hospitals of Leicester.The Leicester Royal Infirmary has around 890 beds. Construction for the new emergency department was completed in April 2017. The new department has assessment rooms and facilities for elderly and frail patients, particularly those suffering from mental health problems such as dementia.