Evening star., 1937-11-27

Of the hospital is made up chiefly Of
graduate and student nurses. His
story, despite his non-speciflc termi-
nology, carries the sensational value
he intended.
Professional Standards Upheld.
eve, as nurses, have always en-
deavored to uphold the standards Of
our profession. loyalty and service to
our patients, our school and hospital.
Although conditions have not always
been ideal, we have realized that our
administration Is Of the best and
that it is definitely not the fault of
the institution. which has managed
the funds appropriated in most
commendable manner.
Never at any time have. We en-
deavored to secure public sympathy
concerning professional matters, but
have tried to serve the public of
Washington in the face of ditn-
culties '''
I'VE, the nursing staff Of the hos
pital. wish to take this opportunity
to clarity a few Of the exaggerations
which have been placed before the
public as truths"
The condition at Freedmen's Hos
pital is different, for that institution
has not come in for any share of
criticism and so far as Secretary Ickes
was represented, he has no criticism
of the conduct of the hospital, which
was described by an interested person
as beyond reproach."
There are certain angles Of ad
ministrative practices and duties
which both DR.. Jones and the Interior
Department feel can be corrected for
the improvement and simplification
Of the service A very large part Of
the troubles at Freedmen's Hospital
has been due to woeful lack Of
funds for personnel and equipment,
which handicaps efforts to render
more efficient service
Bans Overcrowding.
II refuse to overcrowd this hospital"
DR.. Jones defended. 1T Is better to
give good service to fewer patients
rather than poor service to many"
In order to operate more efiiciently
and keep within limited budget in
come, DR.. Jones said he has deliber-
ately reduced the number Of patients.
The capacity is now 1922 beds. Many
times they are all filled; sometimes
the number of patients is less.
In his report to Secretary Ickes, the
hospital head pointed out that the
plumbing, 80 years old, constitutes a
definite hazard ANY day major de-
fects may assume such proportions
that hospital activities will have to
suspend" he warned.
In explanation, he said the two
antiquated water tanks used in con-
nection with facilities are in danger
Gus condition. One is so crippled that
frequently it is impossible to flush the
toilets it serves. The other is in dan
ger of bursting and this, he said. would
put % toilets out of commission.
The leaky condition of the roof,
making it necessary to move patients
in some wards in times Of heavy rains,
he has been assured, will be reme-
died.
Small Staf Carried.
Next to Gallinger Hospital, a re-
port indicated, the nursing stan is
proportionately the smallest in any
local hospital.
Counting only supervisors, head
nurses and general duty nurses, Gal
linger had 50 nurses to serve 1853 pa
tients when the report was made.
This is proportion Of l nurse to IA
patients.
Freedmen's, with % nurses and 237
patients. had proportion Of to 10.
The proportion of nurses to patients
in some Of the other Washington hos
pitals shows Sibley with to S, Co.
lumbia with to l plus, Georgetown
with to 3. Children's with to 3.
Garfield with l to 2 plus, Emergency
with to 4 and Providence with to g.
I'VE can't work on regular eight
hour schedule at Freedmen's," DR..
Jones said. Every one of US pitches
in and hours can't always be regu-
lated. There are times when nurses
and ambulance men have to do long
stretches. Frequently q single nurse
will have to care for as many Is "a
patients"
There Is another factor which gives
Freedmen's Hospital a unique oppor-
tunity to serve the colored race, fol
whom it was founded in Civil Wa,
days by the Government. It's bed
capacity exceeds that of all the Other
hospital beds available for colored
patients in the city except at Gallinger.
Dual Control Set-Up.
Many years ago Howard University
decided over to the Government the
land on which Freedmen's Hospital
stands, in return for a contract under
which the hospital provides service.
for the university's Medical School
In 1888 dual responsibility for the
hospital was established, dual but