2
The following table gives the Police admissions to Hospital and deaths for the last 10 years :-
1878,
1879,
1880,
1881.
1882,
1883,
1884,
1885,
1886,
1887.
Admissions.
Deaths.
.566..
6
566..
8
.588.
.13
.498.
..10
.549.
8
.599.
...10
.486.
7
.495.
9
.602.. .619..
.......14 9
TROOPS.
There was a still further increase in the amount of sickness among the Troops last year as compared with 1886, but the death rate was as usual small compared with the amount of sickness. 1,749 men were admitted to the Military Hospital as compared with 1,607 in 1886, an increase of 142.
There were 14 deaths, of these two were cases of suicide, and two were from an explosion of fire works.
Table IV gives the average strength of the Garrison and shows an increase of 88 compared with 1886. The admissions to Hospital with the percentage of sickness and mortality are also given.
The following were the admissions to the Military Hospital and deaths for the past 10 years:-
1878,
1879,
1880,
1881.
1882.
1883,
1884,
1885.
1886.
1887.
Admissions.
Deaths.
.10
944...
.1,035.
8
.1,075..
13
1,116.
4
.1,019.
9
.1,105.
....10
.1,097.
......12
.1,190.
..24
.1,607.
..1,749.
9 .14
The sickness as will be seen exceeds that of any of the previous years. There were no cases of Cholera among the Troops last year.
GOVERNMENT CIVIL HOSPITAL,
There has been much trouble connected with the Staff of this Establishment during the past year. The Superintendent resigned in the beginning of the year.
Surgeon YARR, A.M.D. acted as Superintendent for six months during the summer, but as he had his own Military duties to attend to, he could not reside at the Hospital. He was however most energetic and efficient in the performance of his duties notwithstanding that he was hampered by his Military work which lay at one end of the City while his Civil work was at the other. He had eventually however to resign the Acting Appointment, his whole services being required by his own Department and Surgeon THOMPSON, A.M.D. took charge for a few weeks till the arrival of the new Superintendent. Surgeon THOMPSON in addition to the trouble of double duty as had been the case with Surgeon Yan underwent the unpleasant experience of having to put the Senior and Assistant Wardmasters under arrest. Fortunately he discovered we could obtain the assistance of two non-commissioned Officers of the Medical Staff Corps to act in their place, and these two officers were accordingly engaged. I am greatly indebted to the Army Medical Department for the valuable and prompt assistance they have rendered the Hospital in its difficulties and I have much satisfaction in recording my appreciation of these services.
Dr. ATKINSON, the new Superintendent, arrived out in the Colony and took charge in November finding the unpleasant state of affairs to which I have alluded, to greet him on his arrival.
The Senior Wardmaster has since been sentenced to seven years hard labour in Gaol for embezzling the property of patients in the Hospital two of whom were in a dying condition.
The Wardmasters have been a continual source of trouble during the fourteen years I have been in charge of this Department. I have seen over twenty appointed besides a number acting for a time. At present we have two Acting Wardmasters neither of whom is satisfied with his post. The Acting Senior Wardmaster, a Police Constable, prefers to return to the Police Force as he finds the hours at the Hospital twice as long, and the ward duties themselves far more arduous and harassing and entailing a greater amount of anxiety and responsibility than his former Police duties while the pay and advantages are inferior. Moreover at the Hospital he has no prospect of promotion in the service. The Acting Assistant Wardmaster a young Portuguese formerly employed in the Sanitary Department thinks the work too much for his strength, and prefers less pay with lighter work and less responsibility elsewhere.
3
342
In my first Annual Report for 1873, I had to comment on the trouble which appeared to besetį the filling of these posts and for fourteen years my reports in the same connection have been incessant but though the Wardmasters' pay has been slightly increased it is not sufficient to secure trained men or in view of the duties performed, or compared with the pay of officers of the same rank in other Departments. The Wardmasters have twelve hours of continuous duty to do. They have to attend the Superintendent in his rounds, to see the Chinese nurses do their duty, to administer medicines, to change dressings, to see diets given out and temperatures taken, to receive and admit patients, to attend to their wants pending the Superintendent's arrival, and many other things which keep them incessantly engaged during the whole twelve hours.
It would be difficult to appreciate adequately the discomfort of the Superintendent, with untrained men attending to the ward duties and the uncertainty he must be in as to whether his directions will be attended to properly and correctly if at all, or yet the bewilderment of a new and untrained Ward- master with the multifarious directions written and unwritten for about from 60 to 100 different patients, or the unpleasantness to the patient himself at having to put up with the nervous, awkward handling, of the untrained nurse, however willing and kindly the intention.
I think I have said enough to show that it is very detrimental to the proper administration of the Hospital that continual changes should recur in these posts by reason of the employment of inferior men at low salaries. Such changes add very greatly to the troubles of the Superintendent, and detract very much from the comfort of the patients. It is true that for the most part the latter are only seaman, Governinent servants, l'olice Cases, or destitutes, but there should be no distinction of class in the treatment of the sick in Hospitals. All are entitled to the same efficiency of nursing as if they belonged to the influential section of the Community,
Dr. ATKINSON has had the trouble of training the two present Wardmasters for three months at a time of great emergency while an epidemic of small-pox was raging in the Colony. The duties of training and instruction doubled his work, and naturally caused him not only a great amount of care and anxiety but necessitated much extra and harassing watchfulness. This burthen Dr. ATKINSON has borne with great cheerfulness, not sparing himself in any way if he could lighten the labour and increase the comfort of those under his charge, and I cannot speak too highly of the skill, care, and attention he has shown in the performance of his duties, but I submit that he should be relieved from a recurrence of such anxieties in the future by the proper organization of his staff.
Fortunately in Mr. WATSON, the Assistant Apothecary, lately arrived and whose appointment is a new one, in Mr. ROGERS the Steward, Mr. U. I. Kar the Student Apothecary, Mr. CARNEIRO the Wardmaster of the small-pox Hospital, Mr. Lo CHEUNG Ir the Clerk, and A Lok the Chinese Ward- master, he has found energetic and willing assistants these officers being thoroughly conversant with their duties.
The office of Clerk at the Hospital is another post which gives considerable trouble and which is subject to frequent changes owing to insufficiency of
His office hours are from nine A.M. till five
this post is one of the most efficient Clerks we have ever had Mr, Lo CHEUNG Ir the present holder of
F.M. and more often seven P.M., and even then were it not for the assistance rendered him by Mr. ROGERS the Steward he would very often not be able to get through bis days work at all. Clerks in other Government Departments and Offices, some of whom have been in the post he now occupies, work as a rule from 10 ̊A.M. till 4 P.M., and while having lighter duties are better paid, consequently Mr. Lo CHEUNG IP is naturally in search of other employment and I shall be forced to recommend a good officer for promotion though it will be much against the interests of the Hospital that it should lose his services.
The Hospital has in consequence of this combination of overwork and insufficient hitherto found it impossible to retain a Clerk long after he had learnt his duties, and if he has not found promotion in the public service he generally has sought private employment.
pay
It must always be a matter of regret that discontent should prevail among the subordinate staff of Hospital for the constant changing of officers in an Institution filled with people distressed in mind or body is not at all conducive to the comfort or alleviation of the latter.
a
If on
A scheme for the employment of European Female professional nurses in the Hospital has been drawn
up
by Dr. ATKINSON at the request of the Government and is now under consideration. enquiry in England it is found feasible the scheme will undoubtedly be a very great benefit to the Hospital. It is not however entirely without some drawbacks for the nurses will have to reside on the premises and this will require a considerable increase of accommodation in the shape of an additional block of buildings which means considerable expense. As usual it is a question of initial outlay.
Last September Mr. W. E. CRow the Government Analyst was transferred for temporary duty to the Sanitary Department. This transfer has, I am glad to say not deprived the flospital of Mr. Crow's valuable services. He continues to attend as heretofore to his analytical duties and researches and the supervision of the Dispensing Department of the Hospital.
The admissions to the Hospital this year show a slight increase of 33.
There were 432 cases of Fever of various types, of these 11 died; 40 cases of Dysentery were admitted of whom 6 died; 53 cases of Diarrhoea of whom 3 died.