In 1745 Bartholomew Mosse, surgeon and man-midwife, founded the original Dublin Lying-In Hospital as a maternity training hospital, the first of its kind. The Rotunda Hospital is unique as an institution in that it has continued to provide an unbroken record of service to women and infants since its foundation. The Rotunda Hospital has been in operation at the Parnell Square campus for 264 years, with the main inpatient building remaining in continuous use since the doors first opened on December 8, 1757, making the Rotunda Hospital the longest serving maternity hospital in the world. The Rotunda remains an independent, voluntary organisation operating under Charter with a Board of Governors and the Mastership System responsible for clinical and operational management. Since the introduction of Hospital Groups in 2013, the Rotunda is the lead maternity centre for the RCSI Hospitals Group.