The Foundation

The primary goal of the Fundació de recerca Sant Joan de Déu is to contribute to the improvement of people's health and well-being by promoting, supporting and coordinating research and innovation at the centres of the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God ‒ Aragon-San Rafael Province, in accordance with its values: Hospitality, Respect, Quality, Responsibility and Spirituality).

Mission, vision and objectives

Accordingly, the Fundació's objective is to work together with the hospitals and other centres of Sant Joan de Déu to expand scientific knowledge and to improve healthcare for people suffering health problems. Moreover, we seek to achieve these ends in an integrated way within the healthcare sphere, always bearing closely in mind the sick people and their families. We approach our research as a participatory and interdisciplinary process, where the interaction between professionals and society generates enriching initiatives that provide an appropriate response to people’s need. 

The Fundació's work is set within the framework of the activity of the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God, which, based on the concept of hospitality and with a universal character, strives to shelter, attend to and help people, especially those who are most vulnerable or who suffer social integration or health problems. The research activities of the Fundació covers different areas of knowledge, mainly in the fields of maternal and child health and mental health, although there are also research groups working in other areas, including research on socially vulnerable populations.

Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God ‒ Spain Province

The Fundació de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu is part of the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God · Province of Spain, an international non-profit organization that takes care of the reception, promotion of health and support of the most vulnerable.

The Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God dates back to the 16th century and it is currently present in more than 50 countries around the world. It is formed by 1,230 brothers, more than 40,000 collaborators (professionals and volunteers), and more than 300,000 benefactors. The Province of Aragon - San Rafael, one of the three in which the Spanish state is divided, is formed by more than 5,000 professionals, 1,052 volunteers and 81 brothers, as well as a network of donors.

Under the concept of Hospitality, the Order takes care of the reception, the promotion of health, support and commitment to the most vulnerable realities of our society from a broad concept of universality and promoting professionalism. The work that the Order carries out in the Province is visible through care centers, hospitals, health centers, social services and religious communities. These are plural centers with a shared social commitment in many cases with other public, ecclesial or private institutions with which there is an affinity in motivation and a shared vision.