Proceedings at the opening of the new surgical hospital of the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, on Tuesday, 21st May, 1861.

Date:
1861
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Proceedings at the opening of the new surgical hospital of the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, on Tuesday, 21st May, 1861. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    reserve for any violent outbreak of epidemic disease. Fortunately, for some years past this form of disease has been limited, fever and small-pox ranging at about from thirty to sixty cases at a time. In 1847 sheds of brick and wood were erected for fever patients, and were capable of containing about 150 patients; but as they had become unfit for occupa- tion, no patients have been kept in them for several years. In deciding on the plans, the Committee has been famished with many valuable suggestions by Dr. M'Ghie, the superintendent of the Infirmaiy, in refer- ence to the ventilation, heating, &c., which his great experience in hospital management well qualified him to give. In a paper by Dr. M'G-hie, which appeared in, and has been reprinted from, the Glasgow Medical Journal of January last, On the Site and Construction of Hos- pitals, with reference to the new Surgical Hospital of the Glasgow Eoyal Infirmary, he says,—The heating is to be efiected by open fires, placed as near as possible in the centre of the ward,—two fires in each ward, placed back to back, each radiating heat in opposite directions towards the extremities of the ward. Various positions in the side and end walls were suggested and considered; but the Committee unanimously concluded in favour of the central situation. In order to carry out this arrangement for heating, and to combine with it an efficient means for the removal of vitiated air, and to secure a separate ventilation for each floor, an oblong shaft is to be carried up through all the wards, of sufficient dimensions (10 feet by 5 feet) to contain two smoke flues and one ventilating flue for each ward, except the top flat, which is to be ventilated by four circular openings in the ceiling. By this arrangement the ventilating shafts, being placed between the smoke vents and fire-places, will be sufficiently heated to