Our Mission

The mission of Calvary Hospital is to care for the medical, emotional and spiritual needs of our adult patients with advanced cancer and other life-limiting illnesses. It is the only fully accredited acute care hospital in the U.S. devoted exclusively to the palliative care of adult patients. Calvary’s core principles are compassion, non-abandonment, dignity and love.

Calvary’s mission today is the same as when we started nearly 120 years ago. Our family-centric approach to patient care is key to relieving the stress and concerns of family members as well.

How it began

Calvary’s mission today is the same as when we started nearly 120 years ago.  Our family-centric approach to patient care is key to relieving the stress and concerns of family members as well.

How Did We Begin?

In 1899, a small group of widows in New York, inspired by the work of a group in France called Women of Calvary, began caring for destitute women with terminal diseases. They took care of the women first in their own homes, then in two brownstone houses on Perry Street in Greenwich Village.

The House of Calvary moved to Macombs Road in the Bronx in 1915, became fully accredited in 1965, and officially changed its name to Calvary Hospital in 1969. Calvary Hospital has occupied its present site at 1740 Eastchester Road in the Bronx since 1978.

We are grateful to the religious orders that have contributed their strength to the work of Calvary. In 1910, the Dominican Sisters of Blauvelt were asked by the Archdiocese of New York to assist in service to the patients at Calvary, and they did so until 1958. From 1958 until 1972, the Dominican Sisters of the Sick Poor administered the Hospital, and from 1972 until 1976, The Little Company of Mary assisted in the administration of nursing and overall patient care.

At present, there is a lay administration, but religious people from many different communities and faiths still share in the work of the Hospital.

Calvary@Home brings the trustworthy signature CalvaryCare to you at home.