Chile's Institute of Hygiene was developed in 1892. Initial activities involved developing a network of chemistry and bacteriology laboratories. Later, it began to produce serums and vaccines, including anti-rabies vaccine and other animal vaccines. Subsequently, the Institute expanded to play a role as a National Reference Laboratory to help control infectious diseases such as diphtheria, scarlet fever, typhoid fever, and anthrax.  Special attention was paid to standardizing methods of diagnosis, exercising quality control of both domestic and imported pharmaceutical products, and producing much-needed vaccines.

The Public Health Institute of Chile (ISP), as it is known today, was created in 1979.  In the years since, ISP has established various centers and departments to help promote positive health in Chile. A special emphasis is currently on prevention and control of communicable diseases. ISP remains an active partner with WHO and PAHO for surveillance of infectious diseases and detection of the emergence of new diseases. Outbreaks of hantavirus, dengue, and bioterrorism, among others, yielded immediate responses from ISP, which has acquired equipment, designed techniques, and trained technical professionals to deal successfully with each of these types of emergencies.