The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-01-15
WARM AT TWO BELOW ZERO.

like the sensation of cold air blowing
upon their heads and faces. They ask
70 nave their beds arranged so they can
feel the breeze.
Now and then the attendants find it
necessary to drive a patient out of
doors, or to keep watch lest he or she
tries to avoid the cold indoors, but in
time all come around to an actual lik-
ing for the new order of things. They
are not subjected to the shock of sud
den changes of temperature, for there
is comparatively little difference in the
temperature of the various rooms and
when they are asleep in a cold room
or are out of doors, they are warmly
dressed. OF course they are not forced
into the cold at once, but about a week
| is needed to acclimate them to it.
Never will 1 live as l used to, in
such hot rooms as we had at home"
are the words Of more than one patient.
| Some who have gone home have been
IA sore trial to their families, because
| they have insisted on having the win
doWs open and have objected to what
the others thought was essential to
comfort and safety. In one instance,
| lake back a practically cured patient,
| because the folks at home couldn't live
I with him.
| These patients get outdoors as early
as possible after breakfast and they
| stay there, at any rate, until supper
time. and some of them spend the eve
ming outdoors. They put in at least
| ten hours day at cooling themselves
/ Negligence and abuse, which might
cause unfortunate results under such
! system, are prevented by the I'M
! Tagging watchfulness of physicians and
| nurses.
| AS part of the equipment Of the in
stitution, two blankets, a reclining
chair and sanitary cuspidor, are rur-
nished free to every patient. Aside
from these things, each needs also a
fur coat. which costs from eight dollars
up, and fur lap robe, which can be
bought for -four dollars Thus, twelve
dollars. ADDED to the price of board 1t
$3.50 a week. makes up the sum total
OF necessary expenditures. The cuspi-
dor is virtually little tin cup pre-
parcel upon an approved model, and
Gus pidcr and patient are as insepara-
BILE as Mary and her lamb. 1t is one
of the most rigid rules of the hospital,
that each patient shall use this cup and
| absolutely and invariably nothing else.
Every morning these little cuspidors
are cleansed, the patients absorbent
paper renewed, and scrupulously
| burned. These papers cost the hos
pital 81 day in the gross,
Visitors sometimes find the hospital
rather trying. They are not used to
such GOODNESS, and if they are not
watched, they are apt to lure a patient
nto a room, shut the windows and
| proceed to get warm and enjoy them
| selves. The rooms are small, and the
air is soon vitiated. This cannot be
allowed, and so it comes about that
patients who entertain visitors become
objects Of suspicion. In case of fever
IF othe troubles. there are private
rooms where everything can be ordered
to suit the case Otherwise, all go into
| the main wards.
The Rutland hospital mas not been
| open long enough TO warrant predic-
tions or afford many statistics. Expe-
rience elsewhere indicates that from
ten months to year are necessary for
the accomplishment Of good results.
! DR., Trudeau of the Adirondack SAN
itarium, divides the results of his treat
ment into five groups. Apparently
! cured, disease arrested, improved, un-
improved and failed. More than 60 per
cent of his patients come under the
two first heads, apparently cured" and
| disease arrested" If the doctors at
the Rutland hospital can put so per
cent Of their patients into these two
! classes, they will feel that they have
had good success at the outset.
1t is not expected that discharged pa
tients can go back to the old over
! heated and ill-ventilated rooms with
out bringing on something like a re-
lapse, but they can take up any work
where reasonably good sanitary condi-
lions prevail. Best Of all, the course