Matthew Hay

Matthew Hay (1855-1932) was a Scottish doctor and champion of Public Health. He was appointed Medical Officer of Health for the City of Aberdeen in 1888, a post he held until 1923. He was also Professor of Forensic Medicine at the University of Aberdeen.

Foresterhill
Professor Hay is known as the father of the Aberdeen Joint Hospitals Scheme. He promoted the development of an integrated medical campus at the Foresterhill site in Aberdeen. Central to his vision for a healthier community was the bringing together of health services for the public with a medical school on the one site, and in 1900 he pinpointed the barren slope of Foresterhill outside the city centre as the ideal location for his dream.

Having convinced the City Fathers of the need for this scheme, work begin on the Foresterhill site in 1926. Since then, Foresterhill has grown to become one of the largest health campuses in Europe, serving the communities of the north-east of Scotland, islands and beyond. The educational and research presence is strong on the site, with a large Medical School and new Institute of Medical Science and Institute of Applied Health Science. Matthew Hay's vision is set to be fulfilled with the building of the Matthew Hay Centre, set to be complete in 2008.