Calendar: 1855-1856 Page 131

MEDICAL DEPARTMENT 127 are seen This story communicates with the basement by two wide iron stairs and with the Operating Theatre by circular iron stair The patients enter by one door from Grange Court and pass out after receiving their medicines by another door The Dispensary -This is alight spacious and commodious room on the ground story with ready access for in-patients on one side and out-patients on the other The dispensing counter for out-patients has the advantage of an excellent north and south light There is drug room of the same size in the basement story The Wards -One single ward and three double wards are already occupied They contain about 100 patients They will be recognised on the plan by the beds which are symmetrically arranged opposite to each other those touching the outer walls being in piers between two windows The space between the beds from side to side is feet and from foot to foot 11 feet There is ample space between the corner beds and the walls The space to each patient is about 800 cubic feet and will be as much as 500 in the large medical wards The dimensions of the wards now occupied are 70 χ 21 χ 15 or 14 Some of them contain 13 and some 15 patients Convalescent Ward marked on the Plan is attached to each group of wards When the building is complete the surgical wards will occupy the East Front facing Carey Street and the medical wards the North Front facing Portugal Street The Great Staircase This is in many respects most important portion of the building Beneath it is the kitchen above it the entrance to the nurses' dormi- tories with lavatories and other offices and attached to it are spacious lifts by which provisions coals and even patients may be hoisted if required The great staircase is as already stated centre of light warmth and air to the whole building out of it the principal passages open and round it all the wards are grouped Until this part of the building is erected the warming and ventilation of the building cannot be said to be complete for it is intended that the air of this large space after being warmed by open fire-places shall pass freely into the wards during the night or whenever the weather prevents the external windows from being opened In summer the thickness of its walls and the opposite north and south windows opening freely will furnish grateful supply of cool pure air If the Building Fund were completed this important part of the building could be erected without delay It is marked on the Plan and is distinguished by the tint The Building Fund Two building funds have been at different times set on foot one in the year 1846 the other in the year 1849 The fund of 1846 amounted to 390 and was expended in part payment for the Grange Estate The fund of 1849 consisted of three parts one of 20 000 second of the same amount and third of 10 000 This third fund which cannot be touched till the sum of 10 000 is made up has vet to be completed It amounts at present to upwards of 000 including donation of 000 by "Friend to the Hospital and one of 500 by Mrs Twining