Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1919-07-10
SCORES
HOUSE Or CORRECTION
Investigation Made BY Board q
Prison Control AS Result
OF Recent Inquiry
REMEDIES ARE SUGGESTED

A.
House of Correction a. Jessup's Cut
aAnne Arundel county, in which the
management Is hard hit
The physicians. who made the inyes-
tigation on the authority Of the Prison
Board. are hrs. Gordon Wilson. j.
aHampson Jones and Victor F. Cullen
The undesirable health conditions
iii the prison we're brought out during
tine recent investigation of the con-
duct of Warden Lankford. who was
charged with cruelty 10 prisoners and
with undue severity in the manage
ment Of the institution The fact was
also brought out that the physician Ia
charge was not appointed hy him and
that lie had no jurisdiction over him
or his work As d result of the dis
closure of health management the
committee Of physicians was appoint
Cd and was authorized ID make thor
ough Investigation
In their report the physicians say !:
According to the statement Of the
physician no medical examination Of
prisoners was made on their admis-
sion until one month prior To our
sis.t. and no record has been kept of
any such examinations. We found
that the only medical record kept was
daily sick report" which showed
nothing OF q medical character save
the reason the prisoner applied for
treatment. No bedside charts OF any
character we're kept OF patients iI In
ghe hospital. III whom there were two
gn the male hospital and four In the
female hospital at the time Of our
visit. No record was kept Of the
drugs, or their doses, that were given
TO drug addicts, OF whom there were
three under treatment In the woman's
hos spitaI at that time
Narcotic Drugs
the prison piayHIcian sEatea fassE shs
gave out each day d defnite amount
of the narcotic drugs required Tor the
treatment TO d prisoner, who acted as
an orderly, and who administered the
drugs according to the Instructions
given him BY the physician. those In
structions being verbal. not written.
we were shown patients suffering
from syphilis, and the annual reports
showed deaths from pulmonary tuber-
culosis. yet the prison physician stated
that no sputum had been sent to the
State Board OF Health for examina-
tion during hts stay there, nor had
eblood been examined in order 10 ac-
curateIy diagnose syphilis, although
the accurate recognition BIZ those dis
eases depends upon such examinations
and are made tree of cost by the State
Board of Health
In our opinion It is impossible to
recognize and treat properly those
and other diseases in their early and
curahle stages unless: ID 4 thor
ough physical examination is made 81
keyery prisoner On his admission to
the institution by physician trained
I'm the modern methods of making such
examinations ~ record IN detail
! is made of this examination for pur-
poses OF comparison with subsequent
Examination In order to recognize the
slight changes which help In the re.
lcognifion Of disease, and finally f3]
the use o9 such laboratory, means 81
diagnosis as the examination Of tht
blood and sputum III cases requiring
lit
Remedies Suggested
Save for the prison physician. ant
/ perhaps some prisoners, there was nj
one in any way trained ii medicine ol
nursing to look after the sick, and 8.
the prison physician resides IA Balti
i more and comes to the institution
daily about 8 In the morning ant
leaves about 4 III The afternoon, tw0
thirds Of each day Of "A hours thii
i institution has no one at hand 20 CIV
even arst-aid
The committee recommends:
That the salary paid the prison play
sician il inadequate ST 500 ! year.
THAT i resident physician shouh
be appointed who should be grad
nate of 4 Glass A school having grad
mated within five years Of his appoint
ment and having had one years ex
lperience as An interne in q hospita
having 100 or more beds.
That there should be a tralnel
nurse.
That buildings should be erected 80
women aud tor contagious dissases.
The closing sentence Of their re
port SAYS: Medical conditions at III
Maryland House Of Correction are y
from satisfactory and can only b
remedEed BY carrying out our recon-
1nendationa.s Z
BEr. Metxerutt. the Republican aneHn
Ser Oa tbs board, at 4 meeting 0s "a
bOard on Tuesday, declined to va
with Dr. Wade for IFS adoption tslaaiz
IMAM Crane. who was absent, Joined I
4 IcEter With Dr. Wade for adoption.