Pequeno Príncipe: 99 years of pioneering and innovation

Completing 99 years taking care of children and adolescents’ health means to take part in the history of many generations. It also means that throughout this journey, the Pequeno Príncipe counted on volunteers, partners, and managers committed to the excellence of their work.

Since the beginning of its activities, pioneering was present in the history of the Hospital. Back in the 1930s, concerned about qualifying people for healthcare, the Pequeno Príncipe inaugurated a “School” for mothers (in order to instruct them how to take care of their child at home) and a School of Nursing. In the field of research, we highlight a study led by the doctor César Pernetta in 1936 at the Children’s Hospital, which created the Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT) that saves many lives. Pernetta developed the formula to treat children suffering from diarrhea – a major cause of infant mortality at the time. The idea was fastly disseminated in the following decade, and it became nationally known as Soro Pernetta, used in almost all health services in Brazil. A progress on behalf of life that quickly surpassed the walls of the Hospital.

Throughout history, offering the best for healthcare has only been possible through the application of scientific breakthrough and the use of new technologies. It was also like this for the Pequeno Príncipe Hospital, which always sought for innovations in science and technology, always placing the human relations in the center of care.

Nowadays, in the era of digital humanism, when information and technology unite to bring even more advances, the Pequeno Príncipe continues to innovate and modernize its resources, in order to offer better services available to its patients.

However, unlike other economic segments, the incorporation of new technologies does not contribute to reduce costs, but makes investments even higher.

In 2017, aligned with its guidelines for sustainability, patient safety and permanent innovation, the Hospital made new and important acquisitions for various specialties, enabled through partnerships with the public and private power.