The American Red Cross Bulletin (Vol. IV, No. 4, October 1909)American National Red Cross
History
The American Red Cross Bulletin (Vol. IV, No. 4, October 1909)
American National Red Cross
American National Red Cross -- Periodicals; Red Cross and Red Crescent -- Periodicals
In the meantime the conditions of hospital work became greatly improved.
On May 8, three days after our arrival, the surgical hospital of
Mrs. Doughty-Wylie was moved from the little cottage and railroad
sheds, where such excellent emergency work had been done under such
adverse circumstances, to a large commodious house, which had been
generously offered for the work by its owner, Cosma Simeonides. In
the well-ventilated, spacious rooms of this building 60 patients were
comfortably housed, and sufficient space was left for an admirable
operating room, for accommodations for help, and for kitchen needs. To
care for the patients in these improved quarters, and to relieve the
work of the British marines, the necessity for whose withdrawal was
anticipated in the near future, a corps of 15 young Armenians and Greeks
were enrolled as hospital assistants. These volunteers were for the most
part students of St. Paul’s Institute, at Tarsus, and their knowledge of
English facilitated the work for the English speaking doctors and nurses.
Under these new conditions work which before was arduous and imperfect
became a constant source of satisfaction and pleasure. A large debt of
gratitude is due to the owners who so generously devoted their beautiful
home to this work.
The transfer of the surgical patients left the first emergency hospital
free for the accommodation of medical patients. It was soon filled and
overflowing, and within a week it was found necessary to accept an offer
of the use of the Greek School for the accommodation of patients. On
Saturday, May 15, this building was opened as a medical hospital with 50
patients, the most part cases of pneumonia, enteric fever, and dysentery.
These patients, too, were under the general care and oversight of Mrs.
Doughty-Wylie. In this building also were housed the four American
first-aid bluejackets who came up from the cruiser _North Carolina_ the
following week; and here, too, was instituted another pharmacy to supply
the needs of the hospitals under the care of the sailors who had had
training in pharmaceutical work.
_Work of Trained Nurses._
In connection with the improvement of the hospital work should be
mentioned the noble work of several trained nurses, whose services
were early volunteered. Miss Yerghanian, sent by the King’s Daughters
Society of Smyrna for this work, arrived on May 5. Miss La Fontaine, of
the British Seaman’s Hospital at Smyrna, came soon after. These two, in
conjunction with two Armenian nurses who came with the Constantinople
Armenian Relief Commission, undertook the nursing of the medical
hospital. Miss Davis, of the Jessie Taylor Memorial School, of Beirut,
furnished Mrs. Doughty-Wylie most acceptable and skillful assistance in
the work at the surgical hospital.
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