The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1922-10-27
COLER SAYS MOLINE
DIVIDES HOSPITALS
Asserts Publicity Used for
Beekman Institution
Was Wrong.
CITY DEFINES NO AREAS
Commissioner Upholds Stand
Taken by Broad Street
Supporters.

Commissioner Bird s. Coler of the
Department OF Public Welfare yester-
day sustained the position of the Broad
Street Hospital in taking exception to
certain statements contained in the
publicity matter issued by the Beck
man Street Hospital in its campaign
for funds.
The Board of Directors of the Broad
Street Hospital have issued a circular
letter which is being sent to ten thou
sand firms in the downtown district
calling attention to a folder published
by the Beekman Street Hospital in
which the statement is made that this
institution mas been designated by the
Ambulance Board of the City of New
York to care for all patients within
a prescribed area shown upon map
included in the literature.
Commissioner Coler absolved the
Board OF Trustees of the Beekman
Street Hospital from any blame in the
matter. placing the responsibility upon
those in charge of the campaign pub
LEFTY. When the Commissioners at
tention was called to the letter writ
ten by the Broad Street Hospital OIL
Gals he Endorsed it in every particular
and added that he believes the trus-
tees of the Beekman Street Hospital
did not know what was going on.
Statement Under Fire.
The statement which the Broad
Street Hospital officials particularly
object TO and are seeking TO correct
is found in one of the pamphlets re-
Gently issued by the Beekman Street
Hospital and is as follows More
than 100000 people every business day
depend on the service of the Beekman
Street Hospital because the Ambulance
Board of the City of New York has
assigned them to the care of this one
hospital"
There follows a map showing a dis
trict bounded on the east by South
street. on the north by Canal street
and on the west by West street from
Canal 10 Chambers, thence TO Broad
way to Beaver street and across TO
South street.
The statement, said Commissioner
Coler, who is a member of the
Ambulance Board. is not accurate for
the reason that the city has no right TO
designate the hospital to which
patient must be taken. The ambulance
for police emergency calls and no
restriction is placed upon any business
or banking corporation from arranging
for the care of its employees at any
hospital ii may select.
THE Ambulance Board did not impose
that district on the Beekman Street
Hospital" he added. 'ln fact we made
several attempts to rearrange the dis
trict in more suitable manner. but
these changes were opposed by the
Board of Trustees OF the Beekman
Street Hospital. The idea of a city
designating a hospital to take care of
patients is an unheard of proposition.
Publicity Put First.
1.-The pamphlet seems to have been
prepared by persons more interested in
publicity than the truth. and il Nthe
board of Trustees knew the facts l do
not believe they would permit these
statements to be made. The am
bulance district as laid out is not in
tended to guide or suggest to the people
OF the downtown district what hospital
they shall support"
Subscriptions to the Broad Street
Hospital are being seriously interfered
with. its officials say, by the publicity
of the Beekman Street Hospital and
numerous letters have been received
from subscribers asking whether the
Beekman Street Hospital is the official
institution designated TO take care of
that district. In that event. some of
the subscribers said, they did not care
to contribute to two hospitals.
Commissioner Coler said he regarded
the present hospital facilities in the
downtown section as ample and recon-
mended an amalgamation of the two
fsa-4 o 81. L..
"A consolidation would be the best
thing both for the residents and the
temporary inhabitants Of the district"
he said. Il cannot comprehend how
on self-evident proposition of this
kind there could be competition as to
who should lose the most money. Let
them both get together for the benefit
of the people and each institution do the
work it is best qualified to perform"