, 1888-08-15

NIOuS IHCClIIS vi ChO OOhhObf HJ
occurrence of a case at Petersfarm Hospi-
tai, where a patient had got his death by
an individual of the hospital having admin
istered poison instead of the medicine
intended for the patient. This case had
been brought up here in the Council and
it had been used as a proof OF the bad
administration at the said Hospital; at
the time it had been stated from other
quarters, tina as the case was under inves-
LEGATION at the Police office, it would have
been better to let the matter be unmen-
toned here until those Investigations had
been concluded. Since then the investlga-
tons have been closed and as nothing has
been brought before the Council on the mat
ter, he thought it was but fair that, as the
one side of the case had been brought for
ward. that the other side should be stated
too. The result Of the Police court investl-
cation is that the case in question had Oc-
cured through a mere accident; the atten-
dant had left the hospital for a short time,
and the man he had placed in bis stead and
who was also employed at the hospital, had
been induced by the entreatieS OF a patient
10 give him a dose of medicine at a certain
hour, and the man had by d mistake taken
a wrong bottle and had administered q
fatal dose of another medicine. 1t had
also been mentioned here in the Council
that the patients and others at the hospital
had been threatened with punishment II
they brought out the affair among the pub
lie: patients that were in the room as well
as employees have deposed that 10 such
threat was made at all by any one, ana
hence the assertion made here TO that
effect was Incorrect. 1t was rather much
on the whole to bring forward the instance
in question as proof of bad administration
at the Hospital. In Denmark a case OF q
very similar nature had occurred very
recently, where a patient in a hospital had
been given a fatal dose of morphine instead
of chloral, by the sick nurse, who was tired
and sleepy. This proves that the method
followed here in respect to the admlnlStra-
ton of medicine to patients by the hoSpl-
tai attendants is not different from hat
followed here, and that we are not worse
situated than in Denmark. The admins
tration of our hospital is therefore not bad,
but as good as it can be ana as good as
similar administration elsewhere.
End Member for Frederiksted's Country
District (SUitzer) would, as it was he who
had brought the matter before the Council,
beg to say, that he could not but admire
the nice defence made by the last honorable
Member i'll this case; but the statements
and reasoningS did not go home. He could
of course not know what witnesses had
been chosen to give declaration, but he
knew that he had made his statements
here in strict accordance with what had
been related by a patient from the same
SiCk-rOom and he had taken care to have
witnesses to what was said to him. He
would beg to point out, that whatever
might be the statements brought forward
in the Police Investigations, this much is
certain, that the Doctor who reported the
case of death did not state the cause of
death, and he must maintain that what
he had said here was consistent with truth,
with what people had seen and heard in
the hospital and had reported further.
We have nothing to do with what tran
spires i'll Denmark's Hospitals.
The Chairman must protest against it
being said that our Hospitals are badly
administrated his own experience referred
mostly to the Hospital in Frederiksted,
and he was sure that nothing could with
truth or justice be said against the way in
which that public hospital is adminiStrated,
the same is the case in C~hriStiansted, as
all the hospitals are under same system of
control.
3rd Member for Frederiksted's Country
District (HeWit0 said that the matter
seems to have more Importance than is
attached to it; but anyhow, as long as the
matter has been brought forward by u
member who represented the Council in
the Hospital Commission, the Council is