New-York tribune., 1922-10-24
Hospital Heads
Satisfy Coler
()l, Fund Drive
r,.,,,n,issioner Agrees That
Beekn,an Street Expenses
Are Justified by Many
Improvement Made
pnrpose Not Misstated
a.,horities Explain They
Did Not Assert Money
Was for Free Patients

eSe W 90
understanding has been reached
....~.sr the officers of the Beekman
c...a, Hospital, which started cam
s,sn ss;s Yesterday to obtain s25o.ooo, and
MA ma 4 coler, Commissioner of Pub
~ Z. wslfare, who attacked the hospital
c.,rraay on the ground that its rum
riue expenses we're excessive.
III The differences were adjusted at
...;rg N Nj. Coler's Offices at which
=. assuissl authorities accounted to
.,r, ~ for tie money spent during the
s,s,e I'M tAey we're reorganizing the insti-
.,,,;on last summer. Before the pres
- hard Of directors took charge the
;rsstutjon was known as the Volun-
.ssr Hospital. Charles H. Sabin, Mar
shslI Field and several other promi-
asrt men are now interested in it.
Il was admitted at the meeting that
,he overhead of the hospital had been
iich during the last few months, but
this was attributed to the necessity
II paying large sums for deferred
maintenance costs incurred during the
did regime.
Complete Renovation Necessary
Al. the time the new board of direc-
tors took charge the institution was
IN depiorable state, it was said. Com
plets renovation, from garret to cellar,
Was Imperative, and operating instru-
msnts and supplies had to be bought
l.. \ Nno NJ
sreens, even in the operating room.
n addition, there were parts of GER
tsin mortgages amounting to $150,Do0
sbout to be foreclosed. and the hos
pitals credit was in such state that
iii purchases had to be made on a
90. D. basis. These obligations had
10 be met immediately and were
charged up on the books to operating
expenses, it was said. The directors
advanced money out of their own
pockets to pay these bills and paid for
she major repairs which had to be
made.
0ne of Mr.. Coler's complaints
sgainst the hospital was TINT the au-
thorities were giving the impression
that they were seeking to obtain money
to pay the expenses of poor patients
He objected to this on the ground that
tie city always was willing to pay the
expenses of charity patients.
Treatment Charges Explained
It developed at the meeting that the
directors had never made such an as
sertion. Patients who can afford it
are required to pay, and those who
cannot are cared for free. Ter per
cent Of the beds in the hospital are
reserved for free patients.
As the representatives of the hos
phss explained it, charge OF 25
tsassis made for treatment Of patients
II the dispensary. If a person is un-
able 10 pay this, he is treated free.
Ese Treatment at this hospital is
ssalable only to those unable to pay,
and is not given simply because a
patient happens to be resident of the
city
The hospital rate for pay patients in
Yards is $3.50 day, which includes
Festment and all expenses. No pa
heLts are transferred from this hos
PITS under its present management to
city institutions simply because they
s-e unable to pay, the directors told,
Commissioner Coler.
Certain kinds of cases are required
hospitals; for example, narcotic ad-
diets and alcoholic cases, and these
cases always are transferred. All pri-
sate hospitals must do this, and the
Rsekman Street institution. is no ex-
ception to the rule.
Co.er Glad It's Cleared Up
Another matter which Mr.. Coler had
criticized was the assertion, which ap-
Feared recently in the newspapers, that
Miss Marian Whidden, superintendent
Of the hospital, was the only woman
hospital superintendent in the city.
Both Miss Whidden and Howard S.
Cullman, president of the institution,
told the Commissioner that they were
aware that there were other women
saperintendents in New York, and
that they were not responsible FOR this
statement.
Mr., Coler dismissed the matter by
saying that the statements of the
officials had put a different light on
it
= am not fighting this hospital" Mr..
Voler said after the meeting, "but do
believe that private institutions should
'oe careful in making campaigns for
money not to misstate the purposes of
me campaign. | am glad to know that
'ae articles to which / took exception
we're the product of publicity man
sno was perhaps trifle cyer-enthu-
! siastic.
The private hospitals of New York
AYE :se been of much more benefit to the
aslzens than to the city itself. In the
proper care of the poor years ago, they
gre an absolute necessity. Since the
@selopment of the city's own great
assltutions, they cannot be called
ssssssity, but they certainly are
sfsat help"
IS Per Cent of Beds in Use
sbout rs per cent of the Beekman
ssee MIeee Hospitals beds are occupied at
4s present time. It's ambulances an
ns ssef an average Of 275 calls month.
sSs'rng August and September, 93 am
salsiiee cases were so serious that they
issmained in the hospital, 2S6 ambu-
NE, s.s patents were treated at the hos
s'al and the remainder we're Of such
nature that they had to be trans
'S.red ~ to other institutions.
:, 1loSe who represented the hess yssni
su,,l me meeting were Miss Whidden, lIr.
sJl.mah, Howard c. Wick, secretary;
) I'm Z. Benedict, vice. president: j.
o. Auafns, auditor, and George w. Nor
w general counsel.
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New York pn,y-a T,n