[The creation of the first anesthesiology service in Spain (Hospital de la Santa Cruz y San Pablo, Barcelona 1941)].

On the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the first Spanish anesthesia department, we review factors that led to its creation and its early development. Hospital de la Santa Cruz y San Pablo in Barcelona was the place where the service was established for several reasons. The first was the growing need for anesthesia to be administered by specialized physicians able to handle problems developing during and after surgery. The second was the presence of a prestigious surgeon, Dr. Juan Soler Julia, who perceived the need, alongside the only physician in Spain who was completely dedicated to anesthesiology, Dr. Jose Miguel Martinez. Finally, the fact that professional anesthesiology allowed a physician to earn a decent income triggered interest in the specialty among physicians.