It is situated 3,840 metres (12,600 ft) above sea level and was founded by Sir Edmund Hillary in 1966.

The hospital was funded and operated by The Himalayan Trust until 1976 and is now supported by the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation.

From the early 1960s, these expeditions had a focus on improving the health and social welfare of the people of Nepal, including the improvement of water supplies, the building of schools, bridges and an airstrip at Lukla, and the provision of medical care and a programme of vaccination against smallpox.

[1][4] In 1966, Hillary, with overseas volunteers and local people, built the hospital at Kunde.

The hospital was initially staffed by overseas volunteers from New Zealand and Canada, provided through the Volunteer Service Abroad organisation and later by The Himalayan Trust and the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation Canada.