The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1894-03-31
SMALLPOX PATIENTS.
How They Arc Handled In the BIG
City Of Chicago.

rhe uneaviehls Job eS the lGsa WAo
Transfer ths Victims es The Dread
Daeseee from TAeir nonss -
tho Peat House.
When the electric call bell rings it Is
for no pleasure drive on which the of1i-
GERS of the health department are
about to embark. 1t il one Of great
danger. Every precaution has to be
taken to prevent the disease from
which the patient they are called upon
to remove is suffering from seizing
themselves. At the ambulance barn
are two suits of clothes-one for each
man-which they don preparatory to
sallying forth on their duty. Each
suit has first to be thoroughly .disin-
fected that no trace of . single small
pox microbe may be found in the folds
Of the garments The same Is true OF
the van. That must also have been
made perfectly free from any infectious
matter.
It is quite an easy matter, says the
Chicago Herald, for person attacked
with smallpox to be removed to the
hospital before the disease has reached
its tonAuent stage. In that case moth
ing is necessary but that the patient
shall put on his warmest clothes and
step into the van, where he will take .
seat on . chair in which he will be en-
sconced until he arrives at the hos
pital. where he Is turned over to the
doctors and nurses. To avoid any dam
ger OF infection or the carrying shout
with them Of disease germs the driver
and attendant Aisinfect themselves
and change their clothes.
When the case is Q continent one the
arrangements necessary become OF
more complicated nature and the two
officials concerned have much harder
task before them. The patient has to
be dressed, q great difficulty In many
cases, for the attendant has, rs far as
possible, to avoid touching an exposed
part. The patient, too, is usually per-
fectly helpless, state of affairs that
It is difficult to contend with. All this
done, there is still the getting ont OF
the patient to the ambulance, and that
is done on the stretcher.
The greatest trouble is caused by de-
lirous patients who constantly kick on
their shoes and make breaks for the
door of the van. The attendant, who
ALWAYS travels inside the vehicle to
look after its patients, has then hard
time OF it. He cannot knock his charge
ON the head or resort to any kind OF
force except to seize him by his clothes
and forcibly hold him down on the
stretcher. Sometimes, too, he is quiet
" humorous in his conduct while in
delirium.
The gloves are useful in more cases
than one. If the boxer wears them to
protect his knuckles, SO does the
person who attends to the burial Of
the corpse of q person who has died OF
smallpox. The very worst cases are
scarcely ever removed alive from the
home to the hospital. Neither are
those of persons who to can afford pro-
vide for them In their own houses
where they can be thoroughly isolated.
Should the medical inspector OF the
health department pronounce recovery
impossible the sufferer is isolated, the
house carded and none but the regular
attendants of the sufferer are allowed
on the premises.
When death occurs outside the pest
house the attendants put on their
gloves to pay q call. The gloves are OF
heavy leather and the call is upon the
dead and not upon the living 1t is
not with q desire to pay their respects
To anyone that it is made, but it Is that
the living and otherwise healthy mil
lions Of the city may not have plague
spot in thir midst IN hour longer than
is absolutely necessary. The two men
carry with them plentiful supply OF
carbolic acid, for the corpse must be
well sponged with that. Every tissue
Of the body is saturated with the pow
erful chemical, and - far - possible
every trace of the dread disease which
caused death is removed.
Even when the body has thus been
treated sufficient care has not been
taken to prevent the disease from
spreading. and the body has to be
wrapped in clothes provided by the de-
ceased's friends all saturated with car
bolic acid, and on the top of every
thing is put . sheet saturated with
carbolic acid. In the meantime the
measurements have been taken and .
cofan provided either by the city or by
the relatives. The corpse having been
placed in this, it is then iuclosed in .
zinc-lined box, which Is always neces-
sary in smallpox cases. Both coffin
and zinc-lined box must be sealed mp
T.