The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-01-04

In reply 10 the leLter OI inquiry winch
I had the honor to receive from you
requesting my opinion upon the advisa-
bility of building hospital for con-
tagious diseases on the Springside
Farm, as ordered by the court of COM
mon council, / beg leave respectfully to
state that I regard the situation mem
toned as Objectionable in the highest
degree, because 1t would defeat the
very object which the establishment Of
such a hospital is intended to accom-
plish, viz: the proper care of patients
afflicted with such diseases.
If the sole object of such hospital
is to get rid of patients afflicted with
contagious diseases as pests and nui-
sances, it might be attained by various
less expensive and possibly more effica-
cious methods-though the plan pro-
posed and indeed ordered is quite as
we'll calculated for that purpose as any
other I have heard offered in sober
earnestness.
In the first place it is too distant from
the center of population of the city
that the transportation out there
would in the case of very sick persons
be attended with great risk to life from
exposure and fatigue; it would be, In
certain number Of cases, the determin-
ing factor Of death and as such by
conscientious physician be entered on
the certificate Of death. 1t would not
look well in the statistics of the board
Of health to find the following enumer-
ated among the causes Of death in the
city of New Haven, Primary, Exhaus-
ton from transportation to hospital.
Secondary, Scarlet fever
In the second place it would be I'M
possible for physicians in active prac-
tice to give critical cases the close at
tention necessary to their proper care.
Cases of diphtheria, for instance otter
require the most prompt attendance
Operations of intuition or traeheaoto~
my are liable to be demanded at eX-
tremely short notice; no one but the
skilled physician, not even trained
| nurse, is able to determine the necessity
therefore in the first place; and in the
second, to perform the operation. 1t
would be impossible to give these cases
the almost hourly attention required at
such distance. Physicians alive to
| the dangers of those complications,
would always hesitate and in many
cases are obliged to refuse altogether
| to recommend the transferance of
| their patients to this distance and in
consequence the hospital would fail of
| it's object Mild or uncomplicated cases
| only would get there.
| Replying to your invitation to discuss
| the selection of Springside farm as a
place for the location of an hospital for
| contagiou diseases, would respectfully
! state that, in my opinion, more unfor-
| tunate and unsatisfactory location
| could not possibly have been decided
| upon. My reasons for so believing are
as follows: /, BY selecting Springside
farm you practically make the institu-
| ton a pest house, which name alone
| will destroy its usefulness in the minds
of our citizens, who are expected to pat
| ronize, and not condemn the hospital.
| 2, The distance from the center of the
city is too great and the physician will
not, and cannot afford to, treat the
cases sent there by them.
8, The physicians of our city will not
| send their cases there unless compelled
| so to do by law and very strict law
| at that.
| 4, To compel a parent or physician to
place child suffering, possibly dying
| from that most horrible of diseases
diphtheria, in an ambulance (public
conveyance being prohibited by law
| on cold winters day and driven to the
ridiculous place selected would be in
human not to say barbarous. You
would not allow your child to be sc
treated, even though you will fully
transgress the law.
1t is to save lives, not to endangel
them, that we want this hospital, and Il
would be horrible price to pay. Mr.
Mayor, to find that, after trial of the
proposed location, even one poor little
life was lost in the transit
The diseases in question run generally
very acute course and there arise II
connection with them frequently grave
emergencies. demanding the presence
of more than one physician at time
for operation or consultation and de
handing their presence with the utmos
promptness. The mere fact that tho
place proposed is so many miles ava,
from the city makes it impossible to Sc
cure for patients residing there, aid
either for consultation or for operation
within any limit of time that would
give such aid a fair chance of beins
effectual In any considerable proper
ton Of cases.
The result of its coming to publ,
knowledge that even two or three sucl
cases had suffered on this accoun
would be to raise such popular preju
dice against the institution that peoplt
would absolutely refuse to send thei
sick ones there and the whole object o
the institution would be defeated
Compulsory measures cannot be en-
forced in the face of a sufficiently an
tipathetic public opinion, and one coult
hardly, with clear conscience, compe
others to send their children to plac
where one would, from the evident i'm
possibility of providing for them frs
rate care, be unwilling to send one
own.
A second extremely important objec
ton to locating the hospital at such
prolonged exposure to the patients in
separable from the transporting then
so far
What l have said above would appl
to all the patients in such a hospital
without exception.
A third consideration concerns thos
who, possessed of at least moderat
means might wish to provide for thei