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From its origins and until very recently, the structure of the Fontilles colony-sanatorium government was dual-headed, strongly hierarchical and masculine. The sanatorium was owned and governed by the Patronato, a confessional and private association, presided over by the Archbishop of Valencia and composed of benefactors from Valencia’s high society. This Board of Trustees ensured that the sanatorium operated in line with Catholic principles and upheld its independence from what were considered to be “interferences” by public administrations, when attempting to supervise the operation of an institution that was partly financed with public funds. The civil and legal personality of the institution rested with the Junta de Gobierno, a governing board in charge of the management and administration of the sanatorium whose members were elected by the Patronato. The Fontilles headquarters were initially located in Gandía, where the Junta de Gobierno meetings were held for many years (sometimes also in the town of Pego). For their part, the Patronato meetings were convened at the residence of its president, in the archbishop’s palace of Valencia, where the headquarters moved in 1943.
There, we were all equal. Voices and images of mutual aid and collective resistance.
The government and representation tasks that these two bodies carried out from outside Fontilles were complemented by the executive and spiritual direction of the sanatorium. This was exercised, within the walls, by the father-director and the Jesuits who assisted him in his task. All of them were appointed by the Provincial of the Tarraconense Province of the Society of Jesus. The deputy director was responsible for the sanatorium’s administration, publicity, and maintenance tasks, the latter being carried out by hired staff and, eventually, by the patients themselves. Tertiary Sisters of St. Francis and the Immaculate were responsible for the personal care of the patients. Their work was under the supervision of a Mother Superior and the spiritual director. They were also responsible for managing the work of volunteers, both men and women, who resided in the sanatorium and assisted with all caregiving and maintenance tasks. The hierarchical position of the medical director generated several controversies. He was responsible for directing the medical team, and the clinical and research laboratory activities, as well as editing the Revista de Leprología.
Organization chart of the governing structure of the Fontilles Sanatorium, in 1953. Fontilles, 1953, special issue, 10.
