[1] The hospital is the largest of the eight university medical centers in the Netherlands, both in terms of turnover and number of beds.

The history of Erasmus MC goes back to the municipal Coolsingel Hospital (Coolsingelziekenhuis), which was built in the period 1839–1848 by design of city architect Willem Nicolaas Rose (1801–1877).

The building was at the corner of the Van Oldebarneveltstraat and the Coolsingel (near current Lijnbaan) in Rotterdam and had an imposing facade with a width of eighty-two meters.

The first hospital director was Dr. Jan Bastiaan Molewater (1813–1864), who was also a lecturer at the Clinical School that was opened in Rotterdam in 1828.

[5] In May 2011, Erasmus Medical Center signed an agreement with California-based Complete Genomics (Nasdaq: GNOM), a life sciences company that has developed and commercialized a proprietary DNA sequencing platform for human genome sequencing and analysis.

Complete Genomics signed a contract to produce genetic sequence for 250 Erasmus Medical Center samples.

[8] The head of bioinformatics, Dr. Peter J. van der Spek, claimed that Complete Genomics' complete human genome sequencing service will allow us to study genetic variations at a higher resolution and greater sensitivity than has been previously possible.

"[1] Erasmus MC's field of activity is broad and extends from illness to health and from individual to social healthcare.

As a university medical center, Erasmus MC in the Netherlands contributes to research, education and patient care.

[9] It has a health sciences and basic research sector as well as a large number of academic hospital functions.