Hospital Radio is a service provided for patients, staff and visitors to hospital services. Stations usually serve one or two stations within a small area.

The first UK hospital radio was at York County Hospital, in 1925. In the 1930′s, the idea spread to more hospitals. It was only in the 1950′s that the rapid growth of hospital radio really began. The peak occurred in the 1980′s, when over 300 were on air.

Today, there are around 230 stations in the UK, ranging from small 2-3 people stations broadcasting a few hours a week, to large stations with over 100 members broadcasting 24 hours a day.

Initially, the stations were only available by bedside radios, which were connected directly to the studio via wires. Today, many stations now have their own FM/AM transmitters, allowing them to be picked up in the hospital and surrounding area via any standard radio set. Many stations now stream their broadcasts online.

In all but a few cases, hospital radio stations are manned entirely by volunteers. There are currently around 2,500 in the UK. This includes everything from programming, visiting wards to technical, marketing and administration. At most stations, the average involvement per week is around 3 hours, which for some involved in organising this can stretch to almost being a full-time job in itself.

The umbrella organisation, the Hospital Broadcasting Association, has been around in one form or another for around 40 years. It holds an annual conference in March each year, with the Hospital Broadcasting Awards being held on the Saturday evening.

Up until the advent of college courses, hospital radio was the main way young people would learn to present radio. As a result, many of the most famous names in broadcasting worked in hospital radio before moving onto commercial radio or the BBC.

These presenters include Chris Moyles, Simon Mayo, Scott Mills, Ken Bruce & Phillip Schofield.

In most cases, hospital radio stations are charities, and rely on donations and grants to stay on air. The bulk of this money goes on music and transmission licences.