Morris tribune., 1911-04-28
hospital that might be erected here.

nOSplIal IndG mlSHL US 6ToCl0u mere.
Under Chapter 21O, Sec. /, Gen.
Laws of Mimi, 1909, provision is
made whereby the county commission
ers are authorized to appropriate from
the general fund a sum, not exceed
ing one thousand dollars, to aid in the
construction of a any general hospital
in the county. When such appropria-
tion is made it is necessary that the
hospital shall be operated for at least
ten years, and that county patients be
there cared for at stipulated price,
and bonds to ensure the carrying out
of these conditions must be furnished
by the hospital authorities.
The matter of the establishment of
a county hospital in connection with
a county home for dependents. has
been discussed by the county commits
sioners of this county. Upon it's face,
such a county hospital in this county.
seems both feasible and desirable.
The county having recently sold it's
county farm. and being now without
any home for dependents, it would seem
that now. if ever, the time is ripe
for such home and hospital. Objec-
tion is, however, made that the ven-
ture might prove expensive to the
county; that the county would have
to expend large sum of money to
erect and equip such home and hos
pital, and the county might be called
upon to expend large sum each year
to maintain the institution. There
are other objections to the union of
county home for dependents and
county hospital which are obvious,
and we will not go into further detail.
Your committee may. however, be
pardoned for enlarging upon the ad-
vantages to be derived by the people
of the county from county hospital.
Hospitals are quite as necessary and
as useful in the country as in the
large city. Ten thousand people, even
in a healthful farming region of the
United States. have as many illnesses
as ten thousand people in a healthful
city. The old idea that the country
man has less sickness, is an error.
Country folks have also their share of
accidents. In most homes, either in
the city or in the country. there is
neither the knowledge nor the facilities
to care for serious cases of illness
or of accident. In the country, as
in the town. telephone call can
notify the hospital of an accident. an
automobile ambulance with the doctor
can go at a 25 mile an hour rate. if
need be, and quickly bring the patient
to the hospital, under the best condi-
tions and care.
A county hospital could give the
best medical attendance at minimum
cost. Those who advocated such a
hospital for Clay County. Iowa, esti- !
mated the savings for the farmers as
follows:
Suppose you lived ten miles from !,
town. and were taken sick, as many 4
are, for a month, the bill looks like |
this:
To 80 visits. doctor S. .... $3.50. 90
To nurses wages. 4 weeks. 10000 |
To nurses r. R. fare. .... 900 /
Board of patient and nurse. Z?
Total. E. .............. 1886. 90
Suppose you had gone to the hos
pitaI. #
To ambulance, S 800
To hospital room, board and /
nursing thirty days. ...,. 5000
To doctors bill. so visits -. 6O.OOt
Total ................. $125. 90
The first bill is likely to be- larger;
the latter can be considerably smaller.
but need be no larger for any but ex-
ceptional cases. If there be an opera
tion. the bill will be very much larger
IL L L. e