Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1906-07-27
EXPENSES AT STATE HOSPITAL.
Figures Given by Superintendent Grout from
Accounts of Fiscal Year Ending June so.

DR.. Don d. Grout, superintendent of the
Vermont state hospital for the insane at
Waterbury makes public some interesting fig
ures regarding the cost Of operating that in
stitution during the fiscal year ending June
80. Under the new management the expense
per week for each patient was 1921 as com
pared with 1895 for the previous year, a
saving OF rs cents per week on each patient.
In making this reduction the efficiency Of the
hospital has been fully maintained and in
some particulars marked improvement has
been made. As compared with similar in
situations in various other states the expense
per capita at the Vermont hospital is crafty
ingly low. Reports are available showing cost
Of maintaining patients in the insane hos
pitfalls at Danvers, Northampton Taunton,
Worcester, westboro and Boston, Mass;
Utica, N Y; Morristown and Warren, Pa;
Columbus, o.; Augusta, Me-, and the Mary
land state hospital. The expense per capita
per week ranged from S3.45 at Danvers,
Mass, to $500 at Augusta, Me-, an average
Of $4.0a. These figures are taken in nearly
every case from reports for the year 1905,
and are fairly representative of institutions
of this nature in the eastern states.
In discussing the subject of expense Super.
intendent Grout called attention to the diff
cuties in the way of economical administra-
ton at the local hospital as compared with
other institutions where supplies can be de-
livered at smaller cost. To illustrate this
he quoted the average price paid for coal de-
livered at various insane hospitals in the
state of New York in 1901 as being $3.50
ton while the same grade of coal during the
same year cost $3.50 per ton delivered at
Waterbury. This, says DR.. Grout, makes
difference of $4,000 against the Vermont hos
pital, or % cents per week in the per capita
expense.
In the comparison of salaries Of the medi-
cal e.aff between New York and Vermont the
latter has a decided advantage. In New
York medical superintendent receive from
3d. 500 to $4,000 annually with family pro.
vided for inside the institution. First as
sistant physician receives from $1,000 to
So 500 second assistant from $1,000 to
SO 900 and third assistant from $1,000 to
81, 500. At the Waterbury hospital the SUI
perntendent receives $4,000 with no sub
sistence for family the first assistant physi-
clan receives $500; the second assistant,
81 200. and the third assistant $780, Near
" all the New York institutions are too large
to compare with the Vermont hospital in the
matter of expense of general maintenance
but the hospital at Rochester has a popula-
ton about equal to that at Waterbury and
q comparison shows that the superintendent |
and medical staff at Rochester cost ST., 1000 |
annually, while the Vermont hospital super
intendent and medical staff salaries aggre-
gate $7,100. From this must be deducted a |
fair amount for living expenses of the su-
perintendent's family, as that official in
has this in addition to his salary
while DR.. Grout does not. Taking this fact |
into consideration, the aggregate at Water
bury may be fairly placed at $1,000 as com.
pared with $1,000 at Rochester
At the Vermont institution the superin-
tendent also acts as treasurer, having full
control of the finances and being required to
give bond for SO, 900. For this he receives
no extra compensation