Founded by the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine, St. Vincent Charity Medical Center opened on October 10, 1865 as the first private hospital in the City of Cleveland. Among its first patients were soldiers returning from the Civil War. Owned by the Sisters of Charity Health System, it remains rooted in the healing mission of Jesus Christ. As the only faith-based hospital serving the city’s downtown population, quality of care and concern for the well-being of each patient are foremost in the minds of all our Caregivers.

In keeping with the mission of St. Vincent Charity Medical Center and its founders, we have a long-standing reputation for healthcare delivery of the highest caliber, extended to our patients with the compassion and dignity one would expect of a Catholic hospital. Serving as an anchor and economic engine in Cleveland’s Central neighborhood, we treat an average of 125,000 patients per year through primary, specialty and surgical care and through our Centers of Excellence

History of For the Heart of Cleveland

This tag has historic significance for St. Vincent Charity Medical Center. It was the slogan of the capital campaign used to build the School of Nursing in the early 1920s. During that campaign, the hospital raised $1.6 million from the citizens of Cleveland in one week!

Today, For the Heart of Cleveland remains relevant to our patients, our people and our community. It speaks to our location in downtown Cleveland and our contributions to the well-being of the city, medically, economically and socially. Perhaps above all, this tag represents the very heart of our hospital: our mission to care for all with the utmost compassion and dignity.