We are a vast yet delicate organism that must be nurtured and developed today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.

This is the message of the current exhibition on UKC Ljubljana, "Health. Science. Always here," on Gallusovo nabrežje in Ljubljana.

This exhibition marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the central UMC Ljubljana building and the 240th anniversary of the establishment of the first Civil Hospital in Ljubljana, which are two major national milestones that laid the foundations for the development of hospital activities in Slovenia and the excellence of the UMC Ljubljana, built on the dedication of generations.

1.    HEALTH. SCIENCE. ALWAYS HERE.
This year marks two significant milestones for the University Medical Centre Ljubljana: the 50th anniversary of the opening of its modern main building, and the 240th anniversary of the establishment of the first Civil Hospital in Ljubljana.

At UMC Ljubljana, we are committed to strengthening our professional recognition both at home and abroad, and we aim for excellence in providing healthcare services in the Ljubljana region and across Slovenia.

With almost 9,000 employees, we are the country's largest and leading healthcare institution.

We integrate top-level medicine with humanity to provide the most demanding healthcare services.

2.    240 YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESS
The history of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana dates back to 1786, when the first Civil Hospital in Ljubljana was established in the Ajdovščina area.

The Civil Hospital represented a pivotal moment in the evolution of public healthcare in Slovenia, as it was dedicated exclusively to patient care and was staffed with medical and nursing personnel. Initially, the facility had 12 beds for patient care.

Due to demographic pressure, the Provincial Assembly decided in 1888 to construct a new hospital in the area between the Ljubljanica River and Zaloška Road. The new Provincial Civil Hospital was first opened in October 1895. It was built in the pavilion style, comprising of 15 buildings (7 hospital and 8 administrative) and had a total of 568 beds.

Following the Second World War, in 1945, a full Faculty of Medicine was established in Ljubljana. The General Hospital became its teaching base and was renamed the Clinical Hospitals.

In 1957, the Outpatient Clinic/Polyclinic was built, housing the outpatient departments of several clinical divisions.

It was during this period that the systematic development of knowledge began, based on the close integration of theory and practice.

3.    50 YEARS: A NEW ERA OF MEDICINE IN SLOVENIA
The construction of the new Medical Centre building, one of the most extensive construction projects in Slovenia, took place between 1966 and 1975. The new building was officially opened on November 29, 1975.

The new building also attracted the interest of the international professional community. The hospital received a visit from the internationally renowned Lebanese-American heart surgeon Michael Ellis DeBakey, while the WHO representative Leo A. Kaprio sent a letter of congratulation to the hospital on its well-organised services.

With its almost 1,100 new hospital beds, modern architecture, and work organization, the Ljubljana Medical Centre became the largest hospital complex in Yugoslavia.

The move to the new hospital building began in 1970; at that time, the Clinical Hospitals had approximately 2,800 hospital beds and 2,400 employees.

The name University Medical Centre Ljubljana, used from 1982 to 1992 and again since 2006, emphasizes the role of education and the importance of professional interconnection and cooperation with the Faculty of Medicine.

In 1992, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia passed a decree establishing the Ljubljana Medical Centre as a public health institution.

In 1996, a new statute was adopted which defined the institution's core activities of healthcare, education, and research more precisely. Management was divided between the general and professional directors.

The hospitals were then merged into a single institution capable of managing even the most complex medical challenges.

4.    KRISTL'S EXCELLENT HOSPITAL ARCHITECTURE
Architect Stanko Kristl designed the modern medical centre in Ljubljana as a bright, spacious, and functional space that combines patient care and modern medicine.

The hospital complex, which at the time was the largest in former Yugoslavia, set a new direction for hospital architecture on an international scale, as Stanko Kristl and his colleagues did not forget that the hospital is an integral part of everyday life. 

The building is not merely a hospital – it is a symbol of innovation, staff dedication, and a vision of the future of healthcare.

He said that he wanted the entrance hall to inspire a sense of grandeur and importance in employees, making it a workplace they could enter with pride every day.

With its ceiling decorated with large tin plates reminiscent of women's breasts, the architect intended to give visitors the feeling that they had entered a safe haven, like a baby in its mother's arms.

He deliberately avoided white, the colour we associate with hospitals and sterile spaces. The coldness of white had left a lasting impression on him during a difficult period when his father died in hospital. Inspired one morning by the sunrise, he chose a warmer colour scheme combined with blue and grey tones.

5.    24/7 – ALWAYS HERE
Day and night. Every day of the year. With 73 doctors on duty and 53 doctors on call for all medical conditions.

Our emergency medicine provides fast and professional care for all emergencies, from minor injuries to life-threatening conditions.

Over the course of half a century, we have conducted 4 million examinations, 750,000 minor and 100,000 major surgical procedures at the Ljubljana Emergency Department.

We have also treated 300,000 critically ill or life-threatening patients and helped 150,000 people injured in traffic accidents.

We set 75,000 fractures and applied 300,000 casts.

The total number of emergency visits to the University Medical Centre Ljubljana per year is nearly 130,000.

This figure does not include examinations in the emergency outpatient departments of gynaecology, ophthalmology, otorhinolaryngology, cervicofacial surgery, and maxillofacial surgery, all of which operate within the framework of Slovenia's largest hospital.

6.    VICTORY OF LIFE
Intensive care units provide the highest level of medical care to critically ill or injured patients.

Intensive care units are environments where advanced diagnostic and therapeutic procedures are performed that cannot be provided elsewhere in the hospital. Rapid intervention, accurate diagnostics, and continuous monitoring enable patients to stabilize and gradually recover. 

The primary function of these units is the provision of care for critically ill patients from the Central Slovenia region. However, some patients are also transferred from other regions, as certain treatments are only available at the University Medical Centre Ljubljana (e.g. organ transplantation, mechanical organ support).
The total number of beds in the intensive care units is approximately 90.

Treatment requires a multidisciplinary team that must be available throughout the entire course of treatment, both day and night. In all units, care is provided by physicians with specialized knowledge in the field and registered nurses with advanced training.

7.    A HEART THAT BEATS FOR PATIENTS
With professionalism and dedication to nursing care, we ensure that patients receive the best care and support at every stage of treatment.

Nursing and midwifery care play an indispensable role in patient care at the University Medical centre Ljubljana.

Slovenia's largest hospital employs 3,650 nursing care personnel, 85 percent of whom are women, making them the largest professional group.
Our nursing care personnel creates a support system that ensures the hospital's efficient operation.

We devote a lot of our activities to development and new approaches to improving patient care, and we strive to create a stimulating professional environment.
We place strong emphasis on advancing new approaches to improve patient care while promoting a motivating professional setting.

8.    GIFT OF LIFE
Outstanding collaboration between various specialists has placed Slovenia among the world leaders in the number of heart transplants per million inhabitants since 2012.

We perform heart, kidneys, liver, lungs and pancreas transplants, as well as tissue transplants such as corneas, bone marrow, stem cells, and others. 
Each transplantation procedure requires a team of over 100 experts working in precise coordination.

They are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year round, and are ready to respond immediately, even in the middle of the night, when they are far from their families.

Over the past decades, the University Medical Centre Ljubljana has achieved numerous milestones: the first kidney transplant in 1970, followed by heart and pancreas transplants in 1990, liver transplants in 1995, and lung transplants in 2003.

A particularly remarkable moment occurred in 2025, when we successfully performed a heart transplant on a six-month-old infant—the youngest recipient in the history of Slovenia.

We are the only transplant centre in Slovenia with outstanding international recognition.

9.    ADVANCED SUPPORT, NEW OPPORTUNITY
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) temporarily takes over the work of the heart and lungs in the most critically ill patients.

ECMO enables survival when conventional methods are insufficient and provides new opportunities for recovery. 

We successfully performed ECMO on a child for the first time on 20 June 1994, more than three decades ago. The child was a girl named Lara. " I would like to thank everyone who made it possible for me to be alive today," says the now healthy 31-year-old.

The UMC Ljubljana’s Division of Paediatrics is still the only institution in Slovenia that performs ECMO on children.

10.    STATE-OF-THE-ART TECHNOLOGY
State-of-the-art technology for the treatment of complex cardiac arrhythmias has been developed in collaboration with the University Medical Centre Ljubljana.

The device, developed in collaboration with the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of Ljubljana, is used in the electrophysiology laboratory of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana. It represents the pinnacle of interventional treatment for cardiac arrhythmias, placing us among the best-equipped centres for cardiac electrophysiology.

Approximately two percent of the population is affected by atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm disorder treated using this method. This translates to at least 20,000 such patients in Slovenia.

11.    THE MYSTERY OF THE BRAIN
We study the brain, an organ that offers endless possibilities for research. Rapid scientific progress enables increasingly effective treatments.

Even in the most severe neurological conditions, including stroke, timely and appropriate intervention can limit brain tissue damage and contribute to a favourable outcome. Each year, we treat more than 1,500 patients with stroke.

Using modern methods such as thrombolysis and endovascular procedures, our experts make the most of every moment to preserve the functions and lives of patients. 

Time is brain: if action is not taken promptly, the patient may suffer lifelong consequences. That is why neurologists, under the now well-known acronym B.E. F.A.S.T., work to raise public awareness of how to recognise the signs of these conditions.

In addition to emergency neurology and the diagnosis and treatment of the most severe cerebrovascular diseases, we are the leading institution in Slovenia for peripheral nerve, neuromuscular junction and muscle diseases, hereditary neurological disorders, sleep-wake disorders, and epilepsy - pictured here is an electroencephalogram (EEG), which measures brain electrical activity using electrodes placed on the scalp. 

Our field of expertise also includes neuroimmunological diseases (e.g. multiple sclerosis), movement disorders (such as Parkinson’s disease), memory and other cognitive disorders (Alzheimer’s dementia), and other diseases of the brain, spinal cord, and nervous system.

12.    BEYOND WHAT THE EYE CAN SEE
Each year, we perform more than 9.2 million laboratory tests and over 400,000 radiological procedures, which are essential for the timely detection of diseases, accurate diagnosis, and effective monitoring of treatment.

The UMC Ljubljana’s Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Biochemistry provides laboratory diagnostic healthcare services and serves as the national professional reference institution.

We carry out both basic and specialised haematological, biochemical, and immunological laboratory tests to support the medical activities of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana and other users.

Our activities also include specialised laboratory tests for Slovenian athletes in line with their training programs.

The UMC Ljubljana’s Institute of Radiology of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana provides healthcare services in the field of radiology, which includes both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using X-rays and other imaging methods.

Our radiologists follow the latest developments in radiology worldwide and perform their work within organ-based subspecialties, focusing on cardiothoracic, interventional, abdominal, neuroradiology, musculoskeletal, and paediatric radiology.

13.    THOUSANDS OF NEW BEGINNINGS
Our laboratory for assisted reproductive technology is one of the largest in Europe. Over the past ten years, we have helped conceive more than 3,400 children. 

In 1983, we performed the first successful in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure, setting an important milestone in Slovenian reproductive medicine.
The Division of Gynaecology and Obstetrics not only brings international expertise to Slovenia but also makes a major contribution to the development of IVF methods.

It was in Ljubljana that we began developing a medium for freezing blastocysts or embryos, which has significantly changed the applicability of the method around the world.

Approximately five percent of children in Slovenia are born through assisted reproductive procedures, which corresponds to about 1,000 births per year.

Our team of professionals combines expert knowledge and modern methods to help couples fulfil their wish to have a child.

14.    THE SMALLEST, YET THE STRONGEST FIGHTERS
Our tiniest fighter among premature infants weighed only 340 grams at birth. The limit of viability has declined from 28 to 24 weeks of gestation at the time of delivery.

In the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, we use state-of-the-art medical technology: incubators, advanced ventilation management, vital signs monitoring, and pumps for precise parenteral (intravenous) feeding and drug administration. 

Since the unit was established, direct skin-to-skin contact between premature infants and their parents, known as “kangaroo care”, has been standard practice.

This approach plays a crucial role in bonding and significantly reduces the psychological stress of both parents and child.

Our maternity hospital also provides a lactation unit, where mothers can express milk for their sick or premature infants. A donor milk bank has been operating as part of the unit since April 2023.

15.    COMPREHENSIVE PAEDIATRIC CARE
At the University Medical Centre Ljubljana, we were among the first in the world to recognise the importance of comprehensive care for hospitalized children and adolescents. In addition to medical treatment, we provide psychosocial support, education, and the opportunity for parents to be present 24 hours a day.

At the UMC Ljubljana’s Division of Paediatrics, we treat the most complex and demanding medical conditions. Each year, approximately 12,000 children are admitted. Of these, 2,700 attend the hospital school, which has been operating for over 70 years as part of the Ledina Primary School, including on the paediatric wards of the Divisions of Dermatovenerology and Orthopaedic Surgery. Younger children visit the hospital kindergarten ward of Vrtec Vodmat.

“The hospital school is good because teachers explain the material as many times as needed until you understand it. It’s also great that they take time for you, even for a normal conversation. And they know how to joke around,” say the students.
One of the supportive methods includes animal-assisted therapy, using therapeutic dogs, which can significantly improve a patient’s well-being and cooperation during treatment.

UMC Ljubljana’s Division of Paediatrics also successfully collaborates with musicians and music therapists. A piano in the atrium invites everyone to play.

16.    DECODING OUR GENETIC BLUEPRINT
Using advanced genetic information analyses, we uncover the causes of diseases, develop targeted therapies, and enable more precise, personalized medicine that improves the lives of our patients.

We are one of the leading European centres for genomic research. On average, we identify two new disease-associated genes each year, which represents a significant contribution to the approximately 200 new genes described by researchers worldwide annually.

Recently, our specialists discovered a gene associated with hereditary optic nerve atrophy, a disease that can lead to blindness, as well as gene mutations that cause a new group of developmental brain disorders.

UMC Ljubljana currently has three main laboratories dedicated to genetic diagnostics and are part of: the Clinical Institute of Specialized Laboratory Diagnostics at the Division of Paediatrics, the Clinical Institute of Genomic Medicine, and the Specialized Haematology Laboratory of the Department of Haematology, Division of Internal Medicine.

Collaboration among these three units ensures coverage of a broad range of areas, from rare paediatric diseases to genetics in oncology and haematology, as well as population research and genomic medicine.

17.    ROBOTIC SURGERY: HAND IN HAND
Each year, we perform an increasing number of procedures using robotic technology, including simultaneous multiorgan procedures that represent the very pinnacle of robotic surgery on a global scale.

Robotic systems unite surgical expertise with advanced technology. Every procedure is precise, minimally invasive, and tailored to the individual patient, thus allowing for faster recovery, fewer complications, and better outcomes.

We aim to acquire one or two additional robotic systems and proudly look toward the future: continuing to introduce the most advanced methods, expand our knowledge, and strengthen collaborations both at home and abroad, all with the aim of offering our patients the best possible chance for a new life.

In June this year, the first robot-assisted kidney transplantation from a living donor in Slovenia was successfully performed at our institution. The procedure carried particular emotional significance, since a mother donated a kidney to her 40-year-old son.

Such procedures are far from routine, even abroad – they require exceptional coordination and technological support. This achievement confirms Slovenia’s leading position in robotic surgery within the region.

18.    CUTTING-EDGE TREATMENT FOR NEW HOPE
In collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ljubljana, we are introducing the innovative CAR-T cell therapy, which reprograms a patient’s immune cells to recognize and destroy cancer cells.

Together with other institutions, we are on the verge of launching CAR-T therapy, which is one of the most advanced forms of treatment for haematological diseases in the world.

CAR-T opens new horizons and stands as clear proof that scientific progress can directly transform human lives.

For patients who have not responded to other therapies, it represents new hope.
A major challenge, however, remains the absence of a cyclotron, a key source of radioactive isotopes with very short half-lives (up to two hours), which must be produced in close proximity to the patient.

Intensive efforts are therefore under way to establish a cyclotron within the premises of the Diagnostic and Therapeutic Service (DTS) South, ensuring optimal nationwide access to radiopharmaceuticals.

19.    STANDING ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
Over the past decades, many giants of Slovenian medicine, honoured with the title of academician, have paved the way for us at the University Medical Centre Ljubljana.

The distinguished Slovenian gynaecologist, professor, and academician Lidija Andolšek-Jeras (1929–2003), dedicated her entire exceptional career to our institution. In 1993, she became the first woman to become a full member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, later serving as its chief secretary and then as a member of its presidency.

Nearly two decades after her passing, in April 2023, a bust of the first female academician and honorary citizen of Ljubljana was unveiled in a park bearing her name, situated between the Faculty of Medicine and the old maternity hospital building.

20.    HEALTH. SCIENCE. ALWAYS HERE.
“Excellence in medicine is impossible without excellence in research. UMC Ljubljana never aspires to mediocrity and continuously seeks the most advanced treatment methods. Our mission is to shape and implement excellence in medicine through excellence in research.”
doc. dr. Marko Jug, dr. med.; (MD, PhD, Assoc. Prof.) 
General Director of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana

Concept and exhibition design: Public Relations and Communications Department, University Medical Centre Ljubljana.
Photography: Matej Povše, UMC Ljubljana Archives, Museum of Architecture and Design Archives
Translated by: Sara Hajdarević, univ. dipl. angl. (BA in English)
October 2025