Report : 1907 / Middlesex Hospital.

Middlesex Hospital.

Date:: 1907

Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report : 1907 / Middlesex Hospital. Source: Wellcome Collection.

309/360 (page 151)

“pursuant to the direction of the Act of Parliament,” entitled “An Act for the better regulation of Lying-in Hospitals,” an evidence of the estimation in which the Governors held this part of the Hospital’s work. However, the impoverished state of finances compelled the authorities to reduce this establish¬ ment, and to limit the number of beds to six, whilst two years later it was resolved to appoint a certain number of midwives to attend cases “at their own habitations,” under the supervision of the “physician man-midwife,” who was granted the sum of five shillings per case “to defray the charge of midwife, coach hire, and other individual expenses.” In 1786 it was thought that if no cases at all were admitted the expense would be reduced, but a trial of this proving unsatisfactory, it was decided to return to the practice of admitting patients, the number, however, being reduced to two. It was not until 1807 that the midwifery in-patients were finally done away with, and a few years later Dr. Merriman, who held office from 1809 to 1826, introduced the plan of employing the pupils of the Hospital to attend cases at the option of the patients, “who, if they prefei a midwife, a pupil is never pressed upon them.” Dr. Merriman published annual reports of his department, from which it will be seen how rapidly it grew. The number of deliveries in 1814 was 64, in 1824 374.—From “The Middlesex Hospital Journal,” vol. ii., p. 105. In the year 1884 a suggestion was made by the Obstetric Physician that Office of the employment of Midwives should be dispensed with, and that all clerks Maternity cases should be attended by Students, under proper supervision. This scheme was carried into effect, and these cases are now entrusted to duly appointed “Extern Clerks,” uhder the supervision of the qualified Medical Officers of the Department. V. A special and in some respects a unique feature of The Middlesex Foundation Hospital is the Cancer Charity, which was established in 1792 under the cer Charitv- following interesting circumstances. In the previous year Mr. John by Mr. ^ HVliitlirGficl Howard, surgeon, of Argyll Street, addressed a letter to the Weekly Board 1792. ' 5 of Governors offering, on behalf of a gentleman who wished to remain anonymous, to defray the cost of fitting up a Ward for the admission of Patients afflicted with cancer. The objects of the donor were set forth in this communication as twofold in scope—namely, in the first place, to give relief to a most deserving class of sufferers, and secondly, to afford oppor¬ tunity for the study and investigation of a disease which was as obscure in its origin as it was fatal in its effects. The offer was accepted, and the unknown benefactor undertook to fit up a Ward for the reception of these cases, as well as to settle the interest of £4,000 Three per Cent. Consolidated Bank Annuities for ever by way of endowment of the Cancer Establishment. The death of Samuel Whitbread, Esq., in 1796 made known the secret that he was the munificent benefactor whose name had been so far concealed, and it was by his expressed wish that his son (Samuel Whit¬ bread, some time M.P. for Bedford) was appointed a trustee of the fund of the Charity, in which he throughout continued to take a keen interest. It M