The words “hospice”, “hostel”, and “hospital” share the same etymological root. In ancient times, the aged and infirm were often admitted to a hospice as a place to die. Typically the physical environment was spartan—walls bare except perhaps for a crucifix, and help limited to prayer. The spirit was otherwise ignored. Most, but not all, hospitals have overcome their monastic provenance and have evolved into cheerier environments. More and more hospitals now encourage the support of family and friends as an aid to recovery. But in too many adult hospitals, the physical environment still betrays its monastic unicellular roots. In health care, as in life, old traditions die hard.

The mere idea of a hospital dedicated exclusively to the care of children is a relatively recent concept. In the mid-19th century, Charles Dickens was a vigorous campaigner for the support of such a hospital in London—specifically, for The Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street. In Our Mutual Friend, published in 1868, he provided one of the first literary references to an exclusively paediatric hospital.¹ He describes how Mrs Boffin persuades an elderly woman to seek good care for …