Hospital housekeepingAikens, Charlotte A. (Charlotte Albina)
Science
Hospital housekeeping
Aikens, Charlotte A. (Charlotte Albina)
Hospitals
Military rule, or organization based on it, is supposed to prevail to
a large extent in the training school, and it is equally important for
it to prevail throughout the other departments of the hospital. While
with nations, civil laws undergo changes as the spirit of the times
change, yet the fundamental principles of military organization remain
unchanged. There is a distinct gradation of officers, and every man is
recognized only in his station. If a private soldier has a grievance or
a report, he is expected to state it to the officer immediately above
him. The captain cannot officially approach a general and ignore the
intermediate officers. The general gives his orders to the officer next
to him in rank, and they pass down the line from rank to rank. Only
thus can a general hope to command the army of a nation successfully.
Each man is expected to be in his place and attend to the duties of
his position and not meddle with the affairs of others. Practically
the same system prevails in large business corporations, and no better
basis for organizing a working force of an institution has been
discovered.
[Sidenote: Rules]
Much as the average American dislikes rules, the fact remains that some
are necessary. The business is greatly overdone in some hospitals, in
others too much laxity exists, and this inevitably tends to lower the
tone of the institution. For the domestic department it is wise to have
cards with a set of general rules printed and framed and posted in
conspicuous places to serve as reminders. Each hospital superintendent
will have his own ideas of what general rules should be made for the
government of his hospital employees, but a specimen set of rules may
not be out of order.
1. All services are at certain rates per month or week for
time actually served. Employees desiring to leave shall give
one week’s notice to the superintendent. The superintendent
reserves the right to summarily discharge any employee for
any cause when his presence is detrimental to the interests
of the institution.
2. No reading or smoking in bed at night is allowed and
smoking or chewing of tobacco is forbidden during working
hours.
3. No duplicate keys for any part of the hospital shall
be made except for and by the hospital. All persons having
hospital keys shall deliver them to the superintendent if
absence over night is anticipated.
4. No employee shall enter the room of another at the
hospital without knocking and waiting for reply. Female
employees shall on no account visit men’s rooms nor male
employees women’s rooms.
5. No employee, unless duty requires it, shall enter the
wards without permission of the superintendent, nor shall
they enter departments where they have no duty except on
business.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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