May Shaw gets its name from a remarkable individual who was something of a ‘Florence Nightingale’ of the East Coast in the early 1900s. Before the official establishment of the Bush 

Nursing Service in Swansea in 1921, Nurse Emma May Shaw provided care and support to the senior members of the Glamorgan communities.

 

Several years after May Shaw’s death, a substantial donation by her husband, Howard Amos, led to a campaign to establish a hospital named after her in Swansea.

 

The original May Shaw building in Franklin Street served the needs of the Glamorgan residents until 1992. In 1973 the hospital was moved to Wellington Street, and operated as an annex of the Royal Hobart Hospital. In 1979, following discussions between local citizens, the Council and the State Health Department, it was decided to convert the building to a centre comprising a Doctors Surgery and waiting rooms, two acute beds, and thirty-one rooms for senior community members.

 

In July 2004 May Shaw Health Centre became a separate entity run by a Community Board of Management. In December 2015 the May Shaw Health Centre took over the management of Aminya Residential Facility in Scottsdale, and in 2017, the James Scott Facility.