Second report from the Select Committee of the House of Lords on Metropolitan Hospitals, &c. : together with the Proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix / Ordered, by the House of Commons, to be printed, 5 August 1891.
- House of Lords
- Date:
- 1891
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Second report from the Select Committee of the House of Lords on Metropolitan Hospitals, &c. : together with the Proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix / Ordered, by the House of Commons, to be printed, 5 August 1891. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.
30/956 (page 12)
![26 January 1891.] Mr. Lushington. [ Continued. Lord Thring—continued. 9979. When do the sisters dine?—At half-past five ; they have a separate dining-room. 9980. And what hours do they keep generally ? —They are expected to be in their wards at eight in the morning. 9981. A day sister, you mean, has to be in the ward at that time 7—A day sister. 9982. And then she breakfasts ?—She break- fasts first. 9983. And then does she take something into the ward for luncheon ?—No ; she has luncheon provided for her in the dining-room. 9984. And dines at half-past five, you have told us?—Yes. 9885. What time does she go off duty ?—That very much depends on circumstances. If she is taking in accidents, as we call it, for that week, she probably stays in her ward ; it may be the whole of that day. 9986. To what hour ? —Her sitting-room and bedroom are part of the ward ; she sits in her room occasionally, but considers herself ready to receive patients in case of accident till she goes to bed, which is at 10 o’clock. 9987. The night sister comes on at 10 o’clock? —Yes. 9988. She has breakfast before she comes on ?— Yes ; and then she has her own room where she has refreshments for the night. 9989. And at what time does she go off duty in the morning?—At the same time as the night nurses go off. 9990. And what holidays do they get ?—The sisters get a month in the summer and about a week or ten days at this time of the year ; and we are always ready if they want a holiday at any other time to allow them to go, because we can always temporarily supply their places from lady pupils who have completed their training, who are only too glad to come back to the hospital and do work for a fortnight, or three weeks, or a month, for nothing. 9991. Who attends a sister in her illness ?—One of the assistant physicians, whichever physician they originally ask ; they are allowed to ask any physician that they like. 9992. They have a choice in fact?—They have a choice. 9993. They are attended in their own rooms ? —Yes. 9994. Who attends to the nurses?—One of our assistant physicians, Dr. Shaw, is told off on purpose. 9995. And is there a separate room for them ? — There is a small room for them when they are ill, provided they are not very ill indeed ; if they are very ill, we find that they get better attention by being warded, because then they get the full benefit of all the hospital staff. Chairman. 9996. You said that Dr. Steele went round the hospital twice in the course of the day ?— Yes. 9997. He would, therefore, have the oppor- tunity of observing whether the beds were kept full?—Yes. 9998. In addition to his observation, I think you told us that there was a weekly and a daily return of beds?—Yes. Chairman—continued. 9999. Do 3'ou find that there is any disposition on the part of surgeons to keep beds vacant with a view to having them used for “ interesting ” cases, say if they are aware at the time of any interesting case that is coming?—I do not think they would attempt to keep a bed vacant if they had not got somebody in their mind’s eye. 10000. But possibly the interesting case might be that of a person who could perfectly well afford to pay for himself, and that person might be re- ceived to the exclusion of some other case not equally interesting, which ought to come on the funds of the hospital ?—I hope our surgeons would say to such a person, “ As you can afford to pay for yourself you must take a guinea bed, or go into the Bright ward, which is a three- guinea ward.” 10001. But you think that your system of supervision is such that if beds were kept vacant that fact would be noticed ?—Yes, I think it would. 10002. Which beds are the fullest, medical or surgical?—We have many more surgical beds than medical. We have only now four medical wards, one holding 50, another 32, and two others 40 each, 162 in all, and the rest of our 422 cases are surgical. 10003. Are there any children in your wards ? —Yes. 10004. Is that a good plan, do you think ? — We think it a good plan ; we think it affords a great deal of interest to the female patients to have a child in the room ; they take an interest in it and forget themselves; they nurse it and play with it and so on. On the other hand, I quite admit that sometimes a child is a very trouble- some neighbour. 10005. But you do not keep one specific ward for children ?—No. 10006. Y ou have cots throughout the hospital ? — Cots throughout the hospital. 10007. You have a large number of out- patients we were told by Dr. Steele?—Yes. 10008. That is not entirely free ?—No. A few years ago 1 submitted a proposition to the governors that we should charge out-patients 3 d, for the first supply of medicine ; and 6d., I think, covers the medicine for a fortnight; and we absolutely have no trouble in collecting this money. The course pursued is this : that they are attended by the physician or surgeon, as the case may be ; he writes a prescription for them ; when they have got their prescription they band it on to a clerk who is there; betakes their 3d. or their 6 d. if they like to pay it, and then stamps the prescription as having received the money, and then the prescription is taken across the room to the dispensary. In cases where a man says that he has absolutely nothing, and where he is very ill, he is supplied with medicine without charge ; at the same time he is told that inquiry will be made into his condition and circumstances, and if we find out that he is misrepresenting matters and that he can afford to pay for this, he will get no more medicine from us till he does pay. 10009. Do you make many of those inquiries? —Not very many, I am afraid ; I have no return before](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b28040156_0032.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
