Evening star., 1943-01-21
Continued From Page B-1.)

tContlnued From Page BID
Hospital, which is faced with a
grave need for room to care for
such patients.
AT Gallinger, which handles the
city's INDECENT maternity cases, it
was. estimated that the situation
will be relieved as soon as the new
150-bed maternity addition now un-
der construction there is completed.
This will take from 40 to as days.
Only a few of the new hospital
beds will be devoted to obstetrical
use. although some superintendents
said they would center their atten-
ton on this phase of the problem.
Shortage of delivery room facilities
was given as one prerequisite for a
more extensivc expansion along this
line
Looking at the overall picture
with respect to the effect the 627
additional beds will have, some hos
pital authorities estimate that this
expansion alone is enough to take
care of a city of $4,000 persons.
This does not take into considera-
ton the Ais beds in use at the
time of the recent WPB survey, the
l78 beds approved for constructin
and the 300 in the nearby area rec
commended for immediate construc-
ton
The estimate is based on an av-
erage occupancy per bed of 80 per
cent. In other words, each bed
would be in use approximately 300
days out of each year. If the av-
erage stay of each patient was 10
days, that would mean each bed
could accommodate 80 patients
year. On this basis, the extra beds
hospital heads say they can install
will care for 1880 additional pa
| tients.
Alexandria Hospital.
Chief opposition to the theory
that the Metropolitan Areas hos
pital problem will be solved by the
WPB program was heard from the
nearly section of Virginia and Mary
land. OF this suburban population,
Alexandria in particular has been
left out of expansion plans and has
announced already that it will carry
its appeal to "the highest author
ity"
The WPB report recommends
construction of new 100-bed hos
pitfalls in Arlington County, Va,
and at Cheverly and Bethesda, Md.
While conditions at Alexandria Hos
pital are admitted by WPB consult
ants to be terribly crowded." that
institution under present plans must
depend for relief on construction of
the hospital in nearby Arlington
County, estimated to relieve it of Z
to 10 patients day.
Commenting on the situation at
Alexandria, Robert G. Whitten, ad-
ministrator of the hospital, said
there are times when we feel that
certain deaths occur which might
be attributed to the fact that the
victim could not get into the hos
pital at the time he sought admis-
sion"
This condition will grow worse,
not better" he warned.
Others Generally Satisfied.
so far, Alexandria Hospital is the
only institution that has indicated
1t will appeal the decision of the
War Production Board if it follows
the recommendations submitted by
its consultant. District hospital
heads in all but a few instances
seemed satisfied with developments
and said they were opposed to hos
pital construction that would take
vital materials away from the war
effort.
AS for the future OF the hospital
picture in Washington, most of
them declined to comment, merely
explaining that they dared not pre-
dict what the future would hold. In
the majority, however, were those
who believed that it would be fool
ish to waste money and materials
at present on construction which in
a few years would be outmoded.
They were in favor, instead, of
waiting until the situation could be
relieved by permanent facilities of
the most modern type.
If an epidemic occurs here, they
agreed, it must be met at the time
of its occurrence. They concurred
with the War Production Board
opinion that there Is no sound
method of planning against an
emergency of this type.
The WPB has given no break
down on the commitments made by
local hospitals, but by means of the
poll it was learned that IA of the
District and nearby area have
agreed to put in additional beds in
numbers ranging from to more
than $50.
At Casualty, Miss E. M. Rogers,
superintendent, reported that IL
new beds would be installed as
soon as they could be obtained.
These will be placed in private
rooms. and it is thought will have
no bad effect on patients.
Ready Except for Emergency.
II believe that, according to our
census, we are very well able to
serve that part of the city we are
SbPpocNo w tohC IdlC Va, CSpCIldtly
with these additional beds" Miss
Rogers said. IF there is an over
flow from other hospitals, of course,
we will feel it. But the thing I fear
is an emergency. 1t will be too late
then to prepare"
Columbia Hospital is prepared to
| put in two more beds immediately.
but these will be only of a tenn
porary nature. The institution now
is at its limit under existing facil-
tiles and must add a new delivery
room before there can be further
bed expansion of any consequence.
1t was said.
Doctors Hospital will add % beds
Immediately and will put in 30 more
If conditions demand. Plans for the
immediate expansion, involving an
output of $4,000 for materials, in
cluding beds, already are under way
but the main problem authorities
there are facing is that of nursing
personnel.
| Fnoeropnrv uoepito1 oIrao ~, ~.