Conference of Officers in Charge of Government Hospitals Serving Veterans of the World War
History
Conference of Officers in Charge of Government Hospitals Serving Veterans of the World War
Medicine, Military; Military hospitals; World War, 1914-1918 -- Veterans -- Medical care -- United States
First, it has been a great delight to me, personally, to meet you
Commanders of these various hospitals. I have a very much better idea of
the kind of men that are caring for these institutions and wish to say
to you that I am more than pleased with the capacity and the efficiency
that you demonstrate. Your contact here with each other has helped you
very greatly. To me the whole hospital question is visualized in a much
broader way. I thought I had a fair conception of what this proposition
meant, but I must say I have enlarged my horizon very materially. As for
myself I have received an inspiration such as I have never had before to
make of this hospitalization subject a matter for consideration and of
engagement of a much higher type. With the idea of its immensity, with a
better understanding of many of the details and requirements and
difficulties, I myself go forth to the undertakings I have before me as
the Chief Coordinator of this Board with much more determination than
ever before, with an ambition that has never quite possessed me before,
so I feel that I myself have been very greatly benefited.
There are some things you will take back with you out of this crowded
program. As the days come and go you will have the experience of
referring to this Conference as having given you new light and as having
given you an assistance you hardly record today.
It is my own wish that we may be able to put in the hands of each of you
quite extensive minutes of all of these proceedings. If I can bring that
about in the course of a reasonable length of time, you shall be
possessed of such a record.
I wish to thank the speakers for conforming so regularly to the
suggestion as to time limit. I wish to thank you for the care with which
you have prepared your papers and presented them. I wish to thank those
of you who have participated in the discussions. I want to express my
appreciation of those of you who have listened so intently and
apparently with such interest.
I would be unfair to the occasion if I did not express my gratitude for
the assistance that has been given us by the nurses in their association
with us here.
One thing I would have you do. You are but single representatives of the
institutions from which you come.
It would be somewhat selfish if you were to go home and bottle up within
yourselves the experiences that you have had here and the observations
you have made. Now, fellows, let me tell you what to do: Go back to your
various fields. Call in your associates and your assistants, take up
your whole administrative family and try to inject into them a little of
the enthusiasm, a little of the spirit, a little of the determination;
give to them some of the ideas you take away from here.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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