An introductory address on the future of St. Thomas's Hospital : delivered at the Hospital in the Surrey Gardens, on the occasion of the opening of the session of its Medical and Surgical College, October 1st, 1862 / by John Syer Bristowe.

  • Bristowe, John Syer, 1827-1895.
Date:
1862
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An introductory address on the future of St. Thomas's Hospital : delivered at the Hospital in the Surrey Gardens, on the occasion of the opening of the session of its Medical and Surgical College, October 1st, 1862 / by John Syer Bristowe. 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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    to the clouds. The cure of patients is no more likely to be effected expeditiously in scattered huts^ then in a lofty pile. Thus, looking to our old Hospital, no one I suppose would venture to maintain that Elizabeth^s ward, the lowest in the now dismantled north wing, was less salubrious because Mary^s and Ann^s wards were above it, or that Ann''s, the highest, suffered from the fact that Mary^s and Elizabeths were below it, or that the condition of either of the three wards would have been influenced unfavourably by the superposition of fifty other similar wards. Startling schemes are not always to be commended. Second, as regards airing grounds for patients; there is no doubt that these are desirable, but they are far more important for a sanatorium, or convalescent institution, than for a general Hos- pital ; because, for the most part, in the case of these latter, it gene- rally happens, that when that stage has been reached, at which out-of-door exercise or air is desirable, the patients have to be discharged to make room for more pressing cases of disease. I re- peat, airing grounds are necessary, and no Hospital can be complete without them; but they may be ample, without being extensive. Understand me, I by no means wish to imply, that it is unimportant to obtain as large an area as possible for the erection of a Hospital; but I mean to assert, that excess of space is a luxury, rather than a necessity; and that, in determining the site of a Hospital, the acquisi- tion of redundancy of room should not be insisted on, to the sacrifice, or serious injury, bf other important requirements. Among other matters, on which the welfare of patients depends, are the nature and arrangement of the Hospital buildings, medical attend- ance, nursing, diet, and so on. Although all of these subjects are of the very highest importance, they have, none of them, at the present moment, that special interest, which the questions, I have already passed in review, possess. And I shall dismiss them, therefore, with a remark or two only. The immense importance of having properly constructed and arranged buildings, I have shown, in the course of my address, that I appreciate to the full; by placing this considera- tion,as I have done, far above mere questions of site, and mere questions of gardens. I have the less need to dilate on this subject, because it is one on which in the abstract, I have no doubt, both Governors and Medical Officers are fully agreed. I have little doubt, too, that the new Hospital, wherever it may be erected, will in itself be an excel- lent building. Nevertheless, I hope, in the interests of the institution, that before the Governors finally determine on any plan, they will