Before becoming fully operational on July 1, 1999, the Cardiocentro Ticino first began in 1995 thanks to the tenacity and far-sighted commitment of Prof. Tiziano Moccetti and due to a generous donation by Dr Eduard Zwick, a German physician, who specifically intended it for creating a cardiology and cardiac surgery centre in the Ticino Canton.

Since 1965, a service of invasive cardiology had been operating at Ospedale Cantonale in Lugano, but the need to cross the St. Gotthard Pass to undergo cardiac surgery was perceived as a major gap in the health service of the Ticino Canton. Furthermore, it was very costly for the public administration and a significant inconvenience for both the patients and their families.

In order to bridge this gap, the Cardiocentro Ticino Foundation was set up on December 22, 1995: in less than three years, the Foundation succeeded in completing the construction of the clinic and endowing it with state-of-the-art equipment.

Despite the private nature of the Foundation, the Cardiocentro immediately claimed a strong public vocation, soon establishing itself as an indispensable health facility serving the Ticino population. The Foundation managed the Cardiocentro from its inauguration until the end of 2020, allowing it to achieve the highest quality standards and to gain international prestige in a few years, as evidenced, among other things, by the association agreement with the University of Zurich confirmed for 8 years between 2012 and 2020. On 22 December 2020, 25 years after its setting up and as established by its statutes, the Foundation ceased to exist and the Cardiocentro passed under the public management of the “Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale”, continuing its activity as Istituto Cardiocentro Ticino.