flying dove

Though the tradition of hospitality predates the written word, the first hospitals emerged during the Roman Empire. They were started by early Christians as monastic institutions designed to care for sick strangers. Early hospitals were sometimes called xenodochia because they were places that cared for sick foreigners. During this time period, sick people were typically cared for in their homes by family members. Physicians would visit them there. This meant that travelers or foreigners without families who became sick would often be completely destitute. They were at the mercy of the street, the weather, and strangers.

The first hospitals were designed to care for these sick strangers.