Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-11-09
CONFLICT rs GOOD.

SONOOCl Is
Just here 1t Is the pleasure OF your
standpoint Of practical work and results
our information and observation is such
as to enable us to say that the Georgia
state sanitarium Is conducted on equally
as good lines as any of the institutions
we visited This statement is made with
no spirit of criticism OF depreciation, for
the hospitals visited are all conducted on
high plane, and are among the best in
this country In many institutions the
reforms which were advocated by the late
superintendent, DR.. T. o. Powell, and his
board OF trustees are Just being put into
practice, and had the legislature of Geor-
gia appreciated the great Importance Of
these recommendations and granted the
request of his board and himself made
10 years ago. the Georgia state SANTA
rum would have been fully abreast and
the equal of any insane hospital in this
country. Even as II is now, II has been
a source OF surprise and congratulation or
the part of those at the head of similar
institutions that the sanitarium under
your care has been able to do such good
work and exist at all on the per capita
cost of 34.7 a day. In fact, so little did
this amount appear for the maintenance
of 300 patients. with the medical staff
officers, nurses. attendants and employees
some S.7o0 people, that criticism became
so constant we were 10th to mention the
per capita. And Of the hospitals visited
not one Of them is maintained at so small
an expense as the one under your care
In the language of a distinguished alien
list: "If the state assumes the care OF
her unfortunate insane 1t is her plain
duty to provide every facility deemed es-
sential for the proper treatment of these
those nv alma ara .
to judge-those who have studied the
work in connection with such institu-
tons" Your committee in order to get
as much as possible out of their work.
formulated plan of questions which we
used for information and to invite dis
cussion, which often brought out valuable
points.
Taking up our first question, the staff.
In hospitals with less than 1000 pa
tients we find the arrangement is like
that of your institutional superfn-
tendent first assistant, assistants and
pathologist. In larger hospitals the
stan is composed of a superintendent,
who is the executive head, two first as
sistants, one for each mare and female
division. with assistant physicians un-
der them.
The clinical director comes next,
whose duty is to look after the pa
tients, classifying and assigning them
to the respective sections. Aside from
this he is to preside at the clinical
conferences or stan meetings, which
are held daily In the carry morning,
and all medical officers are expected
to be present Here cases for admis-
sion or discharge are considered, OBJ
scure cases and those or difficult d.
agnosis gone over and discussed, and
| cases of special interest made the sub
ject OF study.
In every hospital where this was in
practice, 1t was thought to be OF ut
most Importance and value, not only
for the stan, but TO the patients.
Your committee believes and would
| recommend that you give this matter
| your careful consideration, Tor We
think that its adoption wouId not only
lessen the arduous duties OF the SUI
1 perintendent, but get better, more et-
| fcient and scientific worx from his
assistants. Iour committee has also
| noticed that the medical stan OF our
hospital, as in many others, is too
small, and ont of proportion to the
number Of patients cared for. We rec
| ommend an increase OF two physicians
/ on the staff and OF two fnsernes. Tt is
| also Of interest TO state that your
] medical staff, while having an aver
| age Of 339 to $40 patients to each ply
stefan, do not have more under theft
: care than 90 the medical officers in
many OF the large hospitals OF the
| country The same is also true of the
| nurses and attendants. 1t must also
| be remembered that one physician can
| care for many more OF the chronic and
4 harmless insane than ne can of the