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Old Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
The Hospital San Nicolás de Bari was the first hospital in the Americas. It was built between 1503 and 1508 during the time when Fray Nicolás de Ovando was Governor of the island. Ovando ordered the hospital to be built after observing the dedication of a black woman who treated the sick and infirm to the best of her ability given that there was, at the time, no institution set aside for that purpose. Today the Hospital San Nicolás de Bari lies in ruins, the result of earthquakes in the 19th century.
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