Annual report of cases admitted into the medical wards of St. George's Hospital, during the year ending Dec. 31st, 1853 / by Dr. Barclay.

  • Barclay, Dr.
Date:
[1853]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual report of cases admitted into the medical wards of St. George's Hospital, during the year ending Dec. 31st, 1853 / by Dr. Barclay. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    ANNUAL REPOET OF CASES ADMITTED INTO THE MEDICAL WARDS OF ST. GEORGFS HOSPITAL, DURING THE YEAR ENDING DEC. 31ST, 1853. \ BY DR. BARCLAY, MEDICAIi REGISTRAR OF THE HOSPITAL. ] During tlie past three years an uniform system of registration of medical cases, ; and classification of diseases, has been adopted at St. George’s Hospital, with the ^ view of ascertaining any great leading facts with relation to the prevalence of cdisease and the ratio of mortality, which from time to time the statistics of an hos- Eital may serve to elucidate; and, in conformity with this plan, an Annual Report as been presented to the Governors, embodying the results of this registration. ]By mutual co-operation unquestionably much valuable information might be Laceumulated from the various hospitals, especially those connected with the imetropolis, where talent and industry are never wanting to carry out any object ithat may tend to the advancement oi science; and by the suggestions of others fcng^ed in similar pursuits, the purposes to w^hieh registration may be made sub- sservient would be more fully developed than has been attempted in the accom- ipanying table. It is here presented simply in the form in whieh it was submitted to the Lgovemors of the hospital, as the ‘ Annual Report of Medieal Cases for the year 11853,’ with the addition of two columns containing the total admissions, and the ] percentage of mortality for the three years. The eases, when first admitted into t the hospital, are entered in the ordinary register of patients, and after death or ( discharge each case is transferred to a classified index of diseases, which forms the 1 basis of the annual summary. By this arrangement a considerable amount of i information regarding any particular disease is at once available: the age, sex, i.and occupation of tiie patient, the duration of the disease prior to admission, the i period during which the case remained under treatment, and its results, as well as tthe diseases with which it was complicated, can readily be ascertained with r reference to any of those enumerated in the index of diseases. In the accompanyiug Report, whenever these complications have been deemed •of sufficient importance, the particulars regarding them have been introduced in ’ the notes, especially with reference to the fatal cases. But though the materials for more complete enumeration exist, it was found impossible to taliulate them in such a manner as to bring the statement within the moderate compass of a yearly abstract. Hitherto it has been limited chiefly to the development of three important particulars:—the actual number of examples of eaeh ctisease admitted during the year, the ratio of mortality, and the proportion of cases complicated wUh other