"A MISTAKE"

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 74, 29 March 1939, Page 8

"A MISTAKE"

UNWIELDY HOSPITAL

LOS ANGELES COUNTY ERROR

EXPERT'S OPINION

In view of the decision of the Wellington Hospital Board to proceed with the major scheme, the comment of Mr. Everett J. Gray, executive superintendent of the Los Angeles County General Hospital, as expressed to Mr. John Aston, of Glenmore Street, Wellington, while on a recent tour of the- United States, is interesting. This hospital is said to be the largest in the world, and though Wellington's, when erected, will be only a comparative midget, it would seem, from the comment made I to Mr. Aston, that over-centralisation is unwise. It was the considered opinion of j Mr. Gray that hospitals of such magnitude as the Los Angeles institution were a great mistake, and he thought that a central hospital for specialised treatment, and major operations with the most modern equipment, supplemented by smaller hospitals in nearby localities for the treatment of what might be classed as domestic cases, would be nearer the ideal of general hospital and medical service. The Los Angeles County General Hospital, a division of the Department of Charities, is maintained by the taxpayers of the county primarily for the care of acutely sick indigents, who cannot provide for themselves nor obtain assistance from legally responsible relatives. It also treats all persons having communicable diseases, those requiring psychopathic . study, prisbners in need of its services, and emergency cases. It is divided into two units^ one staffed by doctors of medicine, and the other by doctors of osteopathy, separately operated. Patients are given their choice at the time of admission of treatment by doctors of medicine or osteopathy. Both units are supervised by the executive superintendent, under whose control are the divisions of accounts, personnel, property, dental work, and pharmacy, maintenance and power, and housekeeping and culinary sections, and the laundry and linen division, which manufactures, launders, and distributes the linen required by patients. TWENTY FLOORS. The general hospital has nineteen floors not counting the basement, said Mr. Aston. The daily patient population varied from 2500 in the summer of 1937 to 300 Cm January of that year, an average of 2561 daily, while in addition an average of 1314 clinic patients were treated daily. A paid staff of 3500 is assigned to shifts covering the 24 hours seven days a week. There are, all told, 35 miles of corridors. The staff includes 237 resident doctors and internes, 784 nurses, 397 student nurses, besides technicians and others. In addition, more than 5C3 physicians and surgeons of the community conitribute part-time, services., The cost of operation is well over £1,000,000 annually (5,500,000 dollars). . Patients are billed for the exact cost of their care in the hospital, but not for the services contributed by attending physicians, and are required to reimburse the county according to their ability to pay. THE ACUTE UNIT. There are 123 buildings on the 56 acres comprising the grounds, and among these is the acute unit, which cost some £2,600,000 to build. Approximately three-fourths of the patients in the general hospital are treated in this, which is the largest and most modern building in the grounds. The capacity of this one building is 2500 beds, but in the case of epidemic, by oyercrowding, it would hold an additional 1000 patients. The total bed capacity of all units in the general hospital is 3600 under normal conditions, and 5000 in emergency. More than 10,500 meals are served to patients and employees daily. Babies born in the general hospital in 1936-37 totalled 4148. Hospital ambulances travelled - 402,408 miles to carry 32,506 patients for the year ended June 30, 1938, and brought .patients up to 50 miles. During their visit to this institution, Mr. and Mrs. Aston' were accompanied by their daughter, formerly a nurse in Wellington Hospital, but a resident of the U.S.A. for some years. A CHARITY FARM. An entirely different and separately controlled division of the Los Angeles County Department of Charities is Rancho Los Amigos, a 540-acre farm, essentially a hospital for the sick and aged, but also an industry, now housing 2737 patients. In its various activities 646 employees are engaged. Engineers, firemen, carpenters, painters, plumbers, steam-fitters, electricians, welders, and workers in all the mechanical trades are needed in what is really a small town. While the condition of most of the patients is such that they can contribute little to the work of operating the institution, all do what they can, and the 50-acre vegetable garden is largely run by the more active. Those who are crippled or blind receive instruction in work in lines that contribute to the needs of the institution. The ages of patients range from one year to 112 years, the average age is 63, and 54 per cent, are under 65 years of age. The "Rancho Dairy" is outstanding amongst such industries in the United States. Since registered Holstein Friesians were established there in 1924, individual cows in the herd have broken 17- California State records and two world records for milk and butter-fat in different competitive classifications. Many sales of breeding stock have been made. Mr. Aston, who visited this institution as well as the county hospital, was greatly impressed by the way in which it was conducted. The average levy is 47 cents per year on each person in the county.