In 1838, five nuns from the Order of the Sisters of Charity in Dublin arrived in Australia aboard the Francis Spaight at the request of Bishop John Bede Polding. They were the first religious community of women to arrive in the new colony. Mother Mary Aikenhead led these five Sisters to establish a mission and become our founding leaders in Australia.Their mission was to care for the poor and needy within the Sisters of Charity framework of care and compassion.

These five sisters demonstrated resilience, strong leadership and a commitment to working with the poor. These qualities have always been synonymous with the Sisters of Charity whose experience with hospitals and health care systems commenced with the establishment of the hospital of St Vincent de Paul, Dublin, in 1824. St Vincent’s was the first hospital staffed by nuns in the English-speaking world. Mother Mary Aikenhead was determined to ensure a high level of care and management practices were adopted within the hospital and sent three sisters to study nursing and hospital administration in Paris, France, prior to its opening. (Blake, 2001).

On arrival to the shores of Australia the Charities became a regular sight in Sydney, visiting goals, orphanages, and the poor and sick and giving religious instruction in Catholic schools. St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney opened in 1870 and over the next forty years, the sisters continued to work in the southern states.

One of the goals of this courageous group of pioneering women was to open their own hospital. On 25 August 1857, St Vincent’s Hospital opened in an estate in Potts Point as a free hospital for all people, but especially for the poor. Three of the Hospital's founding Sisters were professional nurses, having trained in France, and they brought their knowledge to the colony.

It was in 1920 that the Sisters with the support of Archbishop Duhig decided to establish a Catholic hospital in Toowoomba. The Sisters purchased the current site and set about to raise funds for the building of the hospital, the foundation stone was laid 22 May 1921 by Archbishop Duhig and the hospital was opened in November 1922.

In 1991 St Vincent's Hospital was incorporated under its own Act of Parliament and is now known as St Vincent's Hospital Limited. In April 1996, St Vincent's joined the Sisters of Charity Health Service, which has 17 health care facilities and is Australia's largest not-for-profit health provider.

“Caritas Christi Urget Nos – The Love of Christ Impels Us” 2 Cor 5:14. This is the motto of the Sisters of Charity which inspires their work with the poor through the values of compassion, justice, human dignity and unity.