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Abstract

In the middle of the nineteenth century, the crisis of the traditional model of town planning also determined a strong change in supply and demand for public health. In Italy, a health reformation and reorganization of free hospital treatment and health service were considered essential for civil and social development by public opinion. Meanwhile hygiene was becoming an autonomous discipline incorporating medical, statistical and technical contributions. In particular new rules for hospital design were being formulated which did not only concern buildings, but also involved management and administration. Nevertheless, the presence of monumental hospitals in many Italian towns delays the spread of new typological models, especially because of the high costs in building new hospitals. Old or new hospitals was the theme of a very interesting debate, involving technical and scientific environments and public opinion. The Santa Maria Nuova Hospital in Florence is an outstanding example of the above.