Chicago’s Medical District is the hub of the city’s $3.3 billion dollar healthcare industry. The area, situated just south of the Eisenhower Expressway between Western and Ashland avenues, is more medical campus than residential community. Still, the neighborhood hosts a comfortable section of residential streets on its southwest border with rehabbed loft spaces, split-level houses and two-story homes.

Like many of Chicago’s neighborhoods, the Medical District’s history goes back to the days following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The fire devastated much of downtown and took a tremendous toll in human life. With so many burn and trauma injuries from a single incident, the city decided that a concentrated area of hospitals and healthcare facilities would be beneficial to Chicago's growing community. Cook County Hospital was the first of the medical institutions built in the area, constructed in 1876. The next year, Rush Medical College was established, and subsequently Presbyterian Hospital (which is associated with Rush) and the University of Illinois at Chicago's College of Medicine were founded. As the decades passed, additional medical facilities joined the community and today it is a 560-acre campus. With state, county and city government support, the Medical District hospitals continue to make advances in technology, education and health sciences.

As we’ve mentioned, the main focus of the Medical District is healthcare – but everybody’s got to eat, right? There are a few on-the-run dining options in the Medical District that include coffee shops, fast-food joints and a couple mom-and-pop cafes. Dunkin’ Donuts is a popular stop for doctors on their breaks and the local residents are also pleased to have a close by outlet for caffeine and breakfast treats. Retail businesses are limited in the Medical District – not the best place to shop for fashion, although there is a chain department store or two. Fittingly, there are a few pharmacies in the neighborhood and the UIC Medical Bookstore has every title you’d need to self-diagnose your ailments.

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) bus routes and trains run through the Medical District, providing commuting health care providers, students and residents alike with convenient travel options. The Pink and Blue Line “L” trains make a few stops in the area along Paulina Street and the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290) flanks the northern edge of the District, offering motorists easy access to the area's hospitals.