X1000306-1959-60_Part01 — Page 38

266. There is no outpatient department at the Queen Mary Hospital but the Casualty Department, which was opened late in 1956, is the only public casualty centre on Hong Kong Island with the requisite emer- gency specialist cover. The Casualty Department thus receives most of the traumatic, emergency and forensic cases arising in a densely populated area of over one million inhabitants.

267. Table 23 gives some indication of the increasing pressure on the facilities at the Queen Mary Hospital over the past ten years, the bed state during that time increasing from 576 beds in 1950 to 601 beds in 1959.

ر الدار

TABLE 23

1950

Inpatients treated

9,819

4.663

First attendances at Casualıy

(No record)

1958 1959 12.516 14,439 14,620 6.895 7,230 7,212 26.828 29.838

1959. Then burns and scalds accounted for 392 admissions, the majority of whom were children residing in squatter settlements,

271. During the year the Orthopaedic traumatic unit admitted 1,483 patients and carried out 1,182 operations of which 1.035 were major operations.

272. An indication of the pressure on the Kowloon Hospital is given in an analysis below of the work carried out during the past 10 years. In 1950 there were 179 beds in the hospital; to-day there are 407. There were 4,359 general in-patients treated during 1950 and 13,242 during 1959. During that time the overall mortality rate has fallen from 8.7% in 1950 to 6,4% in 1959. This should be viewed in the light of the acute mature of the work undertaken and the very many seriously ill patients admitted. Table 24 indicates on a percentage basis the increase in the work carried out during the 10 year period.

TABLE 24

KOWLOON HOSPITAL 1950/39

Operations performed

Kowloon Hospital

268. This is the main acute hospital for Kowloon and the New Territories and the Casualty Centre for that area. At the end of March 1960 there were 407 beds providing the general casualty and emergency cover for a population of approximately 1,700,000 persons. The hospital is staffed and maintained by Government and there are general medical, including paediatrics, general surgical, orthopaedic and traumatic, mid- wifery and gynaecology and anaesthetic units all headed by Specialists. The Hospital is also a training school for nurses and midwives.

269. The appointment of an Orthopaedic Specialist early in 1959 made it possible to establish a much needed Orthopaedic Traumatic Unit to deal with the greatly increased number of accidents brought to the Casualty Department. All fractures and injuries needing orthopaedic care, either on an in-patient or out-patient basis, arc cared for by this Unit. The general surgical wards have at the same time been able to concentrate on the treatment of acute head injuries and of serious injuries to the soft tissues such as burns and ruptured viscera.

270. During the year a special investigation into the cases of trauma admitted to the wards revealed that the majority of accidents are caused by objects falling from a height-an interesting and not unexpected finding in a densely populated urban area becoming highly industrialized and with many multi-storey buildings. During 1958 and 1959 respectively 1,025 and 1.538 persons were injured in this way. Traffic accidents were next in frequency accounting for 964 casualties and 62 deaths during

VE

Mfasernity Causes

General In-patients

leacluding maternity) Duc-modents AluendanceN

Decimalna casealty)

Operations

texcludiradiniek“)

דין

เรด

102

JOKI 251 201

THE 133

1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1937 1938 10.59

TOG

[71 154 167

180 171 207 21M

124 141 145 154 170 137 164

245 122 224 213 26L 265

184

214

156

142

The rearms For 1950 are taken as 100%.

LIGH

204

1K

273. A number of specialist sessions are held by the staff of Kowloon Hospital at the Out-patient department and at certain outlying clinics. Owing to the limitation of beds the medical and paediatric unit particularly has had to expand its activities mainly in the realm of out- patient care. During the year specialist clinic sessions were started at Shek Kip Mei. Tsuen Wan, Tai Po and Tai O.

The large general out-patient department adjacent to the Kowloon Hospital which includes the hospital casualty department dealt with $32,492 out-patient attendances during the year. The Casualty Department attended to an average of 196 emergency and accident cases every 24 hours throughout the year.

Lai Chi Kok Hospital

275. This hospital, built on two levels, is accommodated in buildings which were formerly a prison camp and it performs three functions: it accommodates all cases of infectious disease requiring admission to

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