Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-03-17
Health officers Acting With Com
missioners Will Push Plans
To Completion.
THE NEED IS IMPERATIVE.
Burden Under Present System g. Too
Great and Many imposition. Occur
Among Iukir~ aud Bcggur-.

With Che county board ui health uU-
hind them. tho county comm .so.ora
took the first steps yesterday afternoon
toward the building of 8u urgently
needed hospital fnr charitable purpl s.s
Do the present plans are carried ouJ
30 ls estimated that at least 100000 viii
Bo spent This would furnish general
hospital for the treatment 0f mau-
moun, typhoid FOYER and chronic disc
eases, AN operating room and surliell
wand and dispensary. 40 Is propose
20 buildu the hospital ON the Sam. a.a
as the county luhrmary and change
the name to the Salt Lake County hose
pitdI The iunrmary building. viii ua
used for the aged inmates and cone
VaIesceut patients in connection with
the hospital
Now that law has been passed by
the legislature for "a hospital TO. .ne
isolation OF scarlet fever and JIuh-
iberia, 10 ls possible that C0utI- IJIs
ward win be made am addition o. tus
proposed county hospital when This
law was talked about for the creation
of such "a hospital. it was proUos.l tu
build contagious ward iu cHuuac-
ton with ST. Marks hospital 10 is also
the plan OF the county commissioner
To- take care of tubercular patients. An
open ward and "a tent colony win prob.
ably be established short distance
from the proposed hospital To- isolate
them from the other patients
CHARITY AS A BUSINESS.
ON account of the rapid growth OF
the county the dispensing of charity
has become "a business with tho county
commissioner business with a. great
many problems to solve Many cases
of human interest appear and every
phase of humanity is presented M ,ua
stream that flows into the paupsr de-
partment begging for aims. During
the past few months the mlSsloucrs
have paid out thousands of dollars to
the poor, AFFLICTED and needy. ln many
instances 1t has been found that tue
pauptrs wasted the money and derived
only "a small benefit from IT,
Practical charity is the keynote ri the
county commissioner and county board
of health IL is believed that ba.ter
results can bee obtained by building
hospital and treating worthy patients
and caring for public charges than boy
scattering money among them 10 be-
wasted. 10 is believed that tho decrease
in the pauper fund which the hospital
would bring about would soon pay for
the institution.
In many respects the movement was
made necessary by the numerous de-
CeptIons prdctised upon the commits
sioners by the willy. a business worked
20 O. decidedly fine point Upon iuyes-
ugaton the pauper clerk has disoON-
cred many frauds.
The county commissioner and County
Physician %. r. Odcll and his assist
ants discussed a number Of these
points yesterday in "a meeting held iu
the commissioners offices at the city
and County building. They visited the
county inhrmary and looked over the
grounds with the view Of beginning
Immediately the construction OF a hos
pital. The present need is imperative
and Dr. Odon called the attention OF
the commissioners 10 this fact when
he was appointed county physician
Under his administration, the county
ls divided into four precincts or dis
tricts and .u each district a deputy
health officer is appointed. The deputy
fee is very small and no method is
provided for the physicians 10 travel
over their territory. The method OF
disponsing medicine at drug stores I'm
the districts at the expense OF the
county has bceu unsatisfactory The
patients use more medicine than is re-
quired. and they do not get the proper
care.
Although mo- plans have been decided
upon So far as To how The hospital
Will De- operated, 10 is supposed thlt
practically the same method win bee
followed as lu other counties. Instead
of a. county physician. "a superintendent
VIII Doe appointed and he Will d. aided
by assistants and Ga visiting staff l'a-
tients WIN be admitted where they are
shown 90 bo public charges and IN
need of charity aud proper care.
"Thc uhilauthrop.c heart OF Salt Lake
is about as large as dried up appIc,'
said one member yesterday. There
are very few charitable institutions in
Salt Lake boo fact they can Doe counted
uu the fingers of one hand. These boil
few persons whom despair has driven
there and help others who have reach
cd the utmost depths. But these OF
ganizauaus are small and have limited
means and the result is that the bur-
den rests upon tine pauper department
OF tH. county
SOME UNDERSTANDING CASES
Iu wrs.uF the charity lists of faurs
and tlu uuuegdy, 3D. man has been om-
ployUI hy lHe commissioners 90 look
after This work 1u many cases i'm
stances haND been found where tho
commits Toner. have been paying tho
rent of some old woman who bias chill
dreu u saIt Lake 100 good olrcum-
stances bot Ions ago, two women Wul
secured money iur groceries from tus
county sptut 10 luT admission 90 mDv-
ing picture th.at.r- fu cases such rs
these taey have n.en dropped from Ono
list
WHOM Che cammHzi0ucrs meet aFa.n
with tno bulII uf health the plans f1r
the hospital HI.I probably be completed
I.. ID HII I.IH