The Mena weekly star., 1921-12-08
SANATOR|UN HAS HELPED CURE MANY
State Institution at Bonneville a Real Home for Afflicted 0nes-Im- provements Are Needed to
 Care for Young Patients.

Arkansas owns and maintains san- atorium for her tuberculous patients. The institution was founded in 1910 thru the efforts of Judge Joseph M. Hill of Fort Smith and W. K. Oldham of Pettus. Dr. John Shibley of Paris, Ark, was appointed as superintend- ent. After two years he was succeed ed by Dr. R. Bosworth and one year later Dr. Bosworth resigned and the present superintendent, Dr. John Stewart, was appointed. Dr. Stewart came to the Arkansas sanatorium af- ter having served in like capacity at the Missouri state institution. Each year that he has been in charge of this work there has been a marked in- provement and the sanatorium is now fitted out to care for 180 patients while in the beginning only 10 could be accommodated. And the institu- tion now does not begin to fulfill the needs of our people. Fully one-third of the applicants sent in to the sana-
 torium are rejected, for pr. Stewart
 practices the theory that it is far bet ter and more effective to admit only those who are in the first stages of tuberculosis than it would be if he att tempted to care for the incurables.
 Joseph M. Hill, Fort Smith; Hamp
 Williams, Hot Springs; J. D. South
 ard, M. D., Fort Smith; w. K. Old
 ham, Pettus; George s. Brown, M. D.,
 Conway; and J. F. Loughborough, Lit
 tie Rock, comprise the board of trus-
 tees. They are appointed by our gov ernor and the length of term to serve
 in six years. Their work is wholly
 without recompense, yet their interest
 is unfagging. Each month two mem-
 bers of the board make an inspection
 trip to the sanatorium and they try
 to meet each patient and learn their grievances against or praises for the
 sanatorium. They certainly try for cooperation between the members of the board, the superintendent and the patients.
 The superintendent is appointed by
 the board and he, in turn, appoints all the minor officers and physicians.
 For maintenance including salaries of officers and employees, supplies, re- pairs, equipment and other things nec- essary for the operation of the insti- tuition, the state appropriates yearly, the sum of $S0,000. In addition to that sum for this fiscal year, which ends June 30, 1922, $12,000 was appro- priated for erecting and equipping the dairy and $25 ,000 for other perman- ent improvements. $20,000 was need ed to install an adequate water sys- tenn.
 About November 1 of this year, there had been total of 3.454 pa- Iients at the sanatorium. The con densed report for the two years from December 20, 1918, to December 20, 1920, shows that BPS patients were re- ceived during that time. Of this num- Der 121 were discharged with arrest ed cases; PIT were discharged with improved cases; 246 were discharged with unimproved cases; 12 died and TIP were in the sanatorium at that time. 361 housewives headed the list of occupations of patients, 194 farm- CTS were second and 51 school chil- dren were third, greatest in majority. 3l years was the average age of the patients. 72 years was age of oldest patient and 9 years was age of young est patient. During the two years there were l29,760 hospital days with an average daily per capita cost of S2.15. 5S2,455 meals were served, the average cost per meal was 19 1-10 cents. 57 pounds was the largest gain in weight of any one patient and total of 6,360i2 pounds was gained by patients during those two years.
 The morals of the patient body is away above par Because of having several ex-service men as pa- tients, this institution is subject to in- spection of the United States Public Health Service and always the verdict has been that this sanatorium was very much above the other institutions caring for eX-service men.
 The management works faithfully -o keep the patient interested in really living while there Two moving pie lures are shown each week. The ex- pense of these shows is borne by the board and amounts to almost $100 per month. The religious life is far in ad- vance of such exercises in the aver age sanatorium. The Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptist churches have each appropriated sufficient funds to permit minister of their faith to do work at the sanatorium. The Chris ian Endeavor Society of this institu- .ion has been complimented by the Southern General Secretary of the So- l ,iety as one of the most active, larg- ast and best societies in the state of | Arkansas. A library has been started l put the greatest number of the books i are mostly indifferent. Societies and | individuals donating books should ex- arcise rare judgment in the selection l of their gift for oftimes the small | child of ten years will be found read l ng book that is suitable only for | adults.
 One of the improvements which will 1 probably come but which is ever so l badly needed now is a separate hos pital and hall for the child patients. | Because they are to be our men and l women of tomorrow their minds | should be given space in which to de- | veiop m their own natural way in- stead of being hampered with having | v liVe among adults who, on an aver age, are indifferent to children.
 The work done by this institution has brought about good results and ias Denehted great number of peo- De but when one considers the facts l nat there are thousands of people in Arkansas who die yearly from this | reao disease how are we to combat | uch forces when there is only one in- titufion with the small capacity ofl 60 patients to care for the afflicted