Nosocomephobia is defined as the excessive fear of hospitals. Marc Siegel a doctor and associate professor at the New York University Medical Center says, "It's perfectly understandable why many people feel the way they do about a hospital stay," and continues, "You have control of your life ... up until you're admitted to a hospital." U.S. President Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon

Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...

 was known to have a fear of hospitals after refusing to get a treatment for a blood clot in 1974 saying, "if I go into the hospital, I'll never come out alive.".

Etymology

Nosocomephobia comes from the Greek language

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

, nosokemeion- meaning hospital and phobos being irrational fear.