Perth Amboy evening news., 1912-12-21

citns were favored above all others
anu were permitted to practically
.runsthe institution. The physician.
whoS refused to have his name men
toned, said Miss Ehgvall was all
right, but she was SO closely connect
ed With Miss Wood and they were
such intimate friends that they were
as one, and necessarily had to go to-
/ gether in order to remove the OBJ
struction, as it was termed. The in
ference is that the Board of Mana
gers want previous conditions at the
hospital restored, with a certain few
dominating everything.
1t appears likely that Miss Blair
will become superintendent of the
hospital temporarily. A trunk be-
longing to her arrived 1T the i~nstitu-
ton yesterday. According to state
ments made today by those who pro-
fess to know, Miss Beatrice NJ.
Bamber, a former superintendent,
will not return.
Publicity of the discharge of Miss
Wood and Miss Engvall was not de-
sired by the Board of Managers, ac-
corGing to the members seen. In an
! effort to prevent Miss Wood and Miss
Engvall making any publicity of the
matter, a note, comprising practical
ly a threat, was sent to Miss Wood
by Mr.. Harrington yesterday after
noon, advising Miss Wood and Miss
Engvall to step out quietly to avoid
any unpleasantness of being elected.
Fave Refused a Hearing.
The Board of Managers have re-
fused to give the superintendent and
I Io,- rf- ~ Innr5,n IN tha
charges aired against them. Prior
to the meeting of the managers
Thursday night they made request
indirectly to the managers for a
hearing and as yet have received no
reply. They would be pleased to ap-
pear before the managers and an
swer any charges they may have to
make. Persons interested declare it
! queer that no complaint should be
made against the superintendent and
her assistant, that they should at no
time be reprimanded for anything
and then suddenly ousted. 1t is de-
| clared members OF the managing
board could not conscientious1y make
the charges that the institution Is I'M
| clean and that rules are violated, for
monthly visits by them seem to have
been abandoned. Managers have not
inspected the institution for about
| eight weeks, it was stated at the hos
pital this morning. 1t Is charged
that information concerning the work
there was secured by eaves-dropDing
and carried to the Board of Mana
gers and certain physicians by two
nurses, declared to be understudies
of the former superintendent, Miss
Bamber. These nurses, 1t is claimed,
I have advanced farther than ever be-
fore under Miss Woods instructions.
Refused to Favor Certain Ones.
Miss Wood refused to be dictated
to, as she wanted to carry out her
ideas of making a model hospital.
Once, she said, George ]. Haney in
~structed her to take order from only
DR.. william f. Ramsay in case of any
differences between members of the
medical staff. This she fatty refused
to do, deeming it unprofessional.
According to her ideas, one physician
should have no more authority than
' any other.
Under the old regime some nurses
! were favored too, it is declared.
Some of the nurses now working
there hold diplomas, it is said, but
have not as yet served the required
time.
Miss Wood charges that some ply
| sieians have grossly neglected GER
tain patients at the hospital. Lack
of attention by physicians in more
than one case almost caused death,
she says, and in one case would
have, had not the nurses taken it
upon themselves to act. She cited
an instance at the hospital recently
when the attending physician neg
lected to change the dressing for
about twelve days. In another she
| declares the physician in charge of a
! patient who had underwent a very
serious operation, neglected to
change the dressing for eight days.
About a week ago an accident victim
was found to be sinking rapidly at
midnight. The attending physician
was notified. He neglected to re-
spond and the nurses took 1t upon
themselves to administer stimulants
and by good care brought the patient
around so that she is almost able to
leave the hospital now. In n in
stance a doctor showed his dis
pleasure with the hospital by stating
to a patient he could not be taken
there, as it was crowded. That physi-
clan did not call up to learn if there
was room for the patient. The vic
tim grew gradually worse until two
weeks later he was removed to the
hospital and is now in a precarious
condition. Often a hospital case has
been found in a bad state and in
need of immediate treatment by a
surgeon. The nurse calls the physi-
clan and he often tells her to
use her own judgment. Nurses at
the institution who have worked
elsewhere say they have never heard
of a similar state of affairs in a
hospital.
Has Had Much Experience.
Miss Wood has had a long expe-
rience as a hospital nurse, having
worked in a number of institutions,
both as nurse and superintendent.
From what she has learned and OBJ
served, she has knowledge Of a SUI
perintendent's duties and has her
ideas. They do not seem to have
agreed with those of staff physicians
and some managers here. Doctors
say Miss Bamber, when superinten-
dent, also acted as operating room
nurse in most cases and there was no
need of an assistant superintendent
| when she was there.
Mia Wal .-