Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-08-09
STATEMENT BY DR.. CIRCUIT
Exposes Statements Made by the
Rutland Herald.
Cost Of Massachusetts Hospitals Many
Things Not Included in Per Capita
Expenses in That stnte-How
the Money Is Spent.


Don ID. Grout of the State
hospital for the insane TO AN editorial in
n recent issue of the Rutland Herald
charging, In effect, that the superinten-
dent "doctored'' the figures in his report.
superintendent Grout replied as follows
What about the writer of the article
who selects six of the Massa chusetts
state hospitals out of n total Of T. why
not give all OF the them? The compiler
of the statistics must have taken his
hgures from headquarters as the re-
port issued from the Medfeld hospital
that we have docs not ,fve any per capita
cost, 1T simply says that 09o) the per
capita cost Is higher than in the two
previous years on account Of the higher
cost of living md the increase Of wages
for employees The figures given out by
me while ago covered all of the hospi-
tails In the States included. of which
we are IN possession of their reports
and were not selected, but given honest
~ and fairly. II Is as UNFAIR to compare
tho per capita cost of maintenance Of
patients in the Medfeld hospital and tho
Worcester asylum. mot Worcester hos
pitaI different institution with thai.
of this hospital as it would be to COM
pare them with tho average poor house
The Medileld hospital has about 800
chronic. quiet. incurable insane cases.
and the Worcester asylum has about 7rl
or the same class. These cases are So
lected from the other hospitals and are
sent there that they may be made as
comfortable ms possible while they exist.
During the year 1895, GU, Of the 900
patients IN these two hospitals. not one
was discharged MS recovered much i'm
proved or improved. While In iris hos
ptal during the biennial term ending
June 30 1906 $50 were discharged under
those headings and at the last monthly
meeting of the State supervisors of the
insane. July 2s II such were discharged
Anyone at all conversant with insare
people know that as rule the acut7
cases In which recovery may be expected
are much more excited and violent on
admission and require much more care
ana attention than tho chronic cases that
VIII never recover. It would be as fair
to compare the expense of caring for 4
patient with typhoid fever with one who
had chronic rheumatism As to compare
mos" two classes Of tho insane.
'One hundred and sixty thousand dol
lars was appropriated by the Legisla-
$3.50
ture of 1906 for the care of the insane
Tho retreat AZ Brattlehoro was paid So :.
per week for tho care Of an average of
about 22J state patients and the balance
was available for use at this hospital If
necessary
'lf anyone can toll VIVA. tho per capita
cost of maintenance of patients in this
hospital for the biennial term ending
June 80 1906 has becr ,irtl no l,rou,. he
amount on STOCK on hand NJ the beginning
",'' enu,hS 81 mat ter'n. would be
pruH,n u XII" now ne does II, 90
''Nc we '"dlhE on some p'ennlal
,e''',H we We not handicappod this year
','N VI '''''H we "st l'" months
s'.' !" consequence f'h III supply fo'
f"' instance we nave car
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''' ',.9o laws ""o INJURIES VIII appear
80 we" '''''''"' i'i"''' anu "bNon" VIM
,'"H '"' '"" '".rc Will DC nc
,''h VI hP"r's'
u '"e writer oi me Herald article
''''' "'H ''N'' l" "' la'r' ana that DE
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s",u'''"S an" n'' people ne VIII ma 10y
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.'oiis ei''4N Tor improvements III Iaundr!
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