Report of the Weekly Board, respecting certain charges brought against St. George's Hospital.

  • St. George's Hospital (London, England)
Date:
1825
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Weekly Board, respecting certain charges brought against St. George's Hospital. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    14/42 (page 12)
    Thirdly,—By the testimony of the matron, who did not recollect the name of the patient, but who distinctly remem¬ bered that the nurses of Oxford ward (in which Hammond was) applied to her very frequently for clean sheets, saying that a great many were required for the man who had a cut on his knee. Fourthly,—By the general practice of the Hospital, which is that of allowing a change of sheets to those who are confined altogether to bed, once in a fortnight; to those who are not confined to bed, once in three or four weeks; and as often as may be required to those whose complaints are of such a nature as to cause their linen to be soiled, or rendered other¬ wise offensive. Fifthly,—By the circumstance of the purulent discharge having been for a considerable time so copious, that without a frequent change of linen his bed would have been abso¬ lutely intolerable, and would have rendered the whole ward in the highest degree offensive, which alone is a positive proof that the assertions made by Mr. Bailey’s servants were unfounded. The Weekly Board believe that, with considerable allow¬ ance for exaggeration on the part of Mr. Bailey’s servants, they are able, in some measure, to explain the contradictory statement of the latter, and of the Matron, Nurses, and Pa¬ tients of the Hospital. When a patient is under the same circumstances with Hammond, that is, having abscesses or sores, from which there is a profuse discharge, the bed is made up, as usual, with a blanket over the mattress, and a sheet over the blanket: but over this bottom sheet is placed a piece of oiled cloth, and between the oiled cloth and the patient another sheet, folded up: the two latter being so situated as to cover that part of the bottom sheet which is liable to be soiled by the discharge from the abscesses, or in other ways. This arrangement makes it unnecessary that the bottom or lowest sheet should be changed in the case of such a patient, oftener than in others; as it is kept