Until 1954, the Complutense University’s Department of Medicine (Facultad de Medicina) in Madrid was the only one authorised in Spain to award the doctor in medicine title.   

In 1927, the construction of a university area in the Moncloa district was planned, on land donated by King Alfonso XIII. The Department of was the first to be built and has been the headquarters for medical studies as well as other degrees related to the health sciences, with the support of several hospitals working in conjunction with the Complutense University, including the Hospital Clínico San Carlos. The Faculty of Medicine is also home to the School of Nursing, Physiotherapy and Podiatry.

There are three museums in this faculty: the Javier Puerta Museum of Anatomy, the Museum of Medical Anthropology and the Olavide Museum of Dermatology.