USA > New York > Bronx County > The Bronx and its people; a history, 1609-1927, Volume II > Part 17
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There are at present twenty wards in the institution. They accommo- date from twenty to seventy patients except those which are devoted to the care of disturbed mental patients, which have a capacity of eleven each. Each ward has a commodious dayroom or smoking room with a few single rooms and dormitories divided into sections, some of these sections being equipped with low partitions which give the entire ward a light and airy appearance, and render the patients easy to observe by the nurses and attendants both during the day and at night. All the wards in Building No. 2 have pool tables in the dayrooms and every ward is provided with a radio which operates from a central receiving station in the sixth floor of the main building. Loud speakers are used in preference to head phones as most of the patients at the hospital are those who are ambulatory. Each ward has a nurse's office, shower baths, clothing room and lavatory sections. In Building No. 3, which is devoted to the care and treatment of disturbed mental patients, especially constructed tubs and expensive apparatus have been provided for the treatment of the patients by means of prolonged baths which are to be found in every up-to-date hospital or sanatorium for the treatment of mental and nervous patients.
The grounds of the institution, which were very carefully laid out, present a pleasing appearance. There is an athletic field containing a baseball diamond, football field, and cinder running track. For the past two years, very successful Field Days have been held in which various athletic events were held, the competitors being patients in the hospital, at the conclusion of which prizes donated by various ex- service organizations and individuals interested in the patients here, were awarded to the successful competitors. There have also been laid out on the grounds of the hospital excellent dirt tennis courts, as well as tennis courts which have been laid out on the concrete plazas. The grounds of the hospital have during 1925 and 1926 been given consider- able attention. The roads have been resurfaced, special provision has been made for the parking of automobiles, electric lights have been placed along the roadways, and various other minor improvements have been made and further improvements contemplated.
The activities of the hospital are divided into an In-Patient and Out- Patient Department, the population of the In-Patient Department being at the time of writing about eight hundred, and the population of the Out-Patient Department about 646. There are twenty-nine medical
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officers connected with the In-Patient Department and eight part-time specialists on duty in the Out-Patient Department. The hospital has also consulting physicians composed of eminent medical men of New York City, there being nineteen consultants in the following specialties :
Surgery ; Ophthalmology ; Psychoanalysis; Psychiatry ; Gastro-Enter- ology; Neurology; Internal Medicine; Roentgenology; Dermatology ; Metabolic Diseases ; Administrative; Nose and Throat; Neuro-Surgery ; Genito-Urinary ; Otology ; Endocrinology.
There are employed at the United States Veterans' Bureau fifty-seven nurses, sixteen occupational therapy aides, eleven physic therapy aides, one hundred and twenty-three attendants, and three dietitians, the total number of employees being 480. The institution has a completely equipped operating suite for the treatment of neuro-surgical patients, completely equipped clinical, X-ray and psychological laboratories, and other departments which are part of the equipment of every modern hospital for the care of neuropsychiatric patients. The hospital received patients on authorization of the Veterans' Bureau from the states of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, drawing on the ex-service portion of a total population of sixteen million people.
The opening exercises of the hospital were held on April 15, 1922, and the first patients received on April 17, 1922. The maximum number of patients under treatment at any one time was 854. The hospital functions as a private neuropsychiatric hospital licensed by the New York State Hospital Commission, and is regularly inspected by a medical inspector of that Commission. The Reconstruction Section of the hospital is under the supervision of a physician and is composed of two departments, physic therapy and occupational therapy, which are of a very great importance in the treatment of this class of patients. The equipment of this department is very complete, the government having been most liberal in making provision for it. The Physic De- partment comprises electro-therapy in all its forms, and hydro-therapy, which is located in the basement of the main building. Occupational therapy is stressed in the treatment of the patients, and consists of the various crafts, such as textiles, reed and cane, leather work, wood- craft in its various forms, metal work, printing, agricultural activities and academic work. A physical director and assistant have charge of the athletic activities of the patients at the hospital.
The social service work of the United States Veterans' Bureau in The Bronx is done under the auspices of the American Red Cross, there being a director and six assistants. The hospital has a well-equipped dental clinic, containing five dental chairs with three dentists, a dental mechanic and oral hygienist. The institution has a general library of five thousand volumes, employing a chief librarian and two assistant librarians. There is also a medical library. Since April 17, 1922, forty-
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one thousand, five hundred and twenty-seven books and twenty-one thousand magazines were given to the patients and personnel. Since the opening of the hospital 4,953 patients have been treated in the In- Patient Department.
The Bronx Dental Clinic-From time to time the idea of establishing a dental clinic for poor children of The Bronx had been the fond dream of some members of the dental profession practicing in The Bronx. This idea had been more and more accentuated as the knowledge of the relation of oral diseases to general health had become firmly estab- lished, particularly so, when the inadequate, inefficient and sluggishly reluctant manner in which the city officials had been grappling with this phase of health conservation had become conspicuously apparent. These ideas, however, had never been pursued by their entertainers with any degree of forceful determination to bring them to a point of actual realization, until Dr. I. S. Berger, in 1921, when as president of the Northern District Dental Society, forced the issue time and again to a successful conclusion.
The membership of the Northern District Dental Society had then fully endorsed the movement to establish a clinic for poor children and had authorized the formation of a committee of twenty-five dentists to accomplish this task. The committee, which was named The Bronx Dental Clinic Committee, immediately set to work to organize itself into a properly constituted body and to collect the necessary funds for the establishment of the clinic. Elections were held by The Bronx Dental Clinic Committee for officers and a Board of Directors. Dr. Berger was elected president of the former and Dr. Kuntz as chairman of the latter. Due to the tireless efforts of the members on this com- mittee, particularly those of Drs. A. Kuntz, M. L. Rosoff, S. Maggin, S. Rosen, I. S. Berger, and A. M. Rand, who personally solicited and ran two charitable affairs, assisted by the other members of the com- mittee, the initial amount of over one thousand dollars was raised.
The various dental supply houses and manufacturers exhibited con- siderable public spirit in donating almost all the equipment, most of the instruments, and a good deal of the materials and supplies. How- ever, towards the end of 1922 when the present location of the Clinic had already been rented and everything was set to begin actual work, diffi- culties were encountered with the State Board of Charities, when appli- cation for the Charter of the Clinic was filed with the Board. Following several hearings at which the necessity for the creation of this Clinic was established the Board requested the securing of additional cash resources and the reorganization of the Board of Directors so that it consist of laymen of high standing in the community, following on which the Charter would be granted. In looking about for such laymen,
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the members of The Bronx Dental Clinic Committee unanimously de- cided to approach F. A. Gallagher, Benjamin Antin, and Thomas B. Hanson, men who are prominent respected citizens of the community and whose public spirit is a matter of record. These three gentlemen consented to serve on the Board of Directors and in their turn recom- mended a number of other gentlemen now composing the Board. The Board of Directors thus created immediately set to work to secure addi- tional funds. This they accomplished by raising two thousand dollars within a few days. The approval of the incorporation and the issuing of the Clinic License by the State Board of Charities followed on May 8, 1923. The actual activities of the Clinic started on June 26, 1923. The general supervision of the Clinic is vested in the Board of Directors, who are as follows: Benjamin Antin ; I. S. Berger; D. D. S .; Frank A. Gallagher ; Joseph Greenberg; Thomas B. Hanson; Simon Hirshansky, Ph. D .; Morris Polsky; Maurice Muller; Henry Roth, M. D .; Alexander Selkin. The officers are: President, Frank A. Gallagher; 1st Vice- President, Hon. Benjamin Antin; 2nd Vice-President, Thomas B. Han- son; Treasurer, Joseph Greenberg; Secretary, A. M. Rand, D. D. S. The Dental Advisory Board consists of : Dr. D. Wurzel, Chairman ; Dr. M. H. Feldman; Dr. N. M. Gassen; Dr. W. Weinstein; Dr. S. Birenbach; Dr. M. M. Bluhm.
Monthly meetings are held by the Board at the office of the president, when every phase of the activities of the Clinic is gone into in a thorough manner. The more immediate supervision is vested in the Clinic Super- visor and a clerk, who is at the Clinic at all times. The Clinic is open daily from 9 A. M. to 12 M. and from 2 P. M. to 5 P. M., except Saturday afternoons, Sundays and Holidays. The Clinic treats children of school age and is strictly non-sectarian. The fees charged to patients are 10 cents for admission and 25 cents for any complete operation such as Cleanings, Fillings, Extractions and X-ray. Complicated Surgical and Pyorrhea cases pay a somewhat higher fee. The Orthodontia, or teeth straightening cases, pay actual cost of appliances. Patients unable to pay these fees are treated free of charge.
The Clinic staff consists of one hired interne on full time and twenty- eight volunteers. The volunteers give their services without any com- pensation, at definite periods of three hours each, during each month, in proper rotation. The volunteers, as well as the interne, are dentists of high professional standing in The Bronx. There is a Board of Ex- aminers, of three, elected by and from this volunteer body, who examine every patient admitted and chart work to be done for them. The mem- bers of the Board of Examiners were elected because of their high professional merit. The Clinic is equipped with three dental equipments, thus taking care of three patients at the same time. It is also equipped with sterilizing and X-ray outfits and all the necessary surgical and
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dental instruments and appliances. A suitable waiting room and busi- ness office are also maintained.
During the period of from June 24, 1923, to February 19, 1924, when the annual meeting was held, the number of three-hour periods, given by the volunteers, for actual work at the Clinic, was seven hundred' and twenty-seven to approximately two thousand one hundred and eighty hours. The total number of visits made by patients were 3,480. There were five free patients who could not afford to pay anything, one of these, an Orthodontia case, costing the Clinic close to $125 for appli- ances. There were five Complicated Surgery cases. There were twenty- one Pyorrhea cases. There were eighteen Orthodontia cases. The number of Fillings inserted were: 1,202 Silver Fillings; 477 Cement Fillings; 100 Synthetic Porcelain Fillings; two Gold Inlays. There were 933 Extractions, 122 X-rays, and in addition, the various treat- ments : i. e., root canal fillings, prophylaxis, and cleanings.
Montefiore Hospital-The Montefiore Hospital for Chronic Diseases was, as before mentioned, established in 1884, and is one of the largest hospitals in the United States devoted to the scientific study and care of patients with chronic diseases. The medical equipment covers every phase of diagnosis and treatment. Particularly noteworthy are the X-ray, physiotherapy, dietetic, occupational therapy, and photographic departments. There is a completely equipped research laboratory de- voting its energies to the study of chronic diseases, as well as fully- equipped cancer research and neuropathological laboratories. There are out-patient clinics for the treatment of heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and for physiotherapy. There is a Training School for Nurses. The social service department gives assistance to patients and their dependents in their social and economic problems. Patients requiring medical study for diagnosis or treatment or skilled prolonged nursing care, are admitted to the main hospital buildings. Many are rehabil- itated and discharged to their homes. Others, who require custodial care only and who are homeless, are transferred to the Schiff Pavilion, which is designed particularly for their care. In the main institution the following general cases of chronic diseases are cared for : General med- ical, including diseases of the heart, arteries and kidneys, neurolgical, cancer, orthopedic and tuberculosis. At Bedford Hills a Country Sana- torium provides for 219 patients with incipient pulmonary tuberculosis. A total of about 800 patients are now cared for daily in the City In- stitution and County Sanatorium.
The officers and directors of the Montefiore Hospital during 1925 were as follows:
President, S. G. Rosenbaum; Honorary Vice-President, Leopold Stern; Vice-Presidents, William Goldman, Henry Solomon, Samuel
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Kridel; Treasurer, Harold M. Lehman; Honorary Secretary, Arthur D. Wolf; Directors, Henry A. Dix, Motty Eitingon, Isador Fluegelman, Aaron Garfunkel, William Goldman, Leo D. Greenfield, Benedict J. Greenhut, S. R. Guggenheim, Berthold Hochschild, Samuel Kridel, Harold M. Lehman, S. D. Leidesdorf, Leon Levy, Adolf Liebmann, Herbert S. Martin, Walter E. Meyer, Henry L. Moses, Joseph Ober- meyer, Siegfried Peierls, Carl H. Pforzheimer, M. Warley Platzek, Louis J. Robertson, S. G. Rosenbaum, Samuel Sachs, Dudley D. Sicher, Henry Solomon, Fred M. Stein, Leopold Steren, Sol. M. Stroock, Leo Sulzberger, I. Unterberg, Leo Wallerstein, Arthur D. Wolf; Honorary Director, Sigmund M. Lehman; Medical Director, Ernest P. Boas, M. D .; Assistant to the Medical Director, Charles Buckman, M D., Super- intendent, M. D. Goodman, Assistant Superintendent, Jacob Goodfriend, Building Superintendent, James C. Goodrich.
The fortieth annual meeting of the Montefiore Hospital was held on Sunday, April 5, 1925. S. G. Rosenbaum, the President, occupied the chair. Upon motion, duly seconded, the reading of the minutes of the preceding Annual Meeting was dispensed with. The President pre- sented his report which consisted of a brief outline of the history of the institution. He called attention to the fact that the institution was founded in celebration of the centennial birthday anniversary of Sir Moses Montefiore and stated that, from a beginning of a thirty-bed capacity, the hospital now accommodates, including Bedford Sanator- ium, almost eight hundred patients. Mention was made of the remark- able achievements under the leadership of the late President, Jacob H. Schiff. Upon motion, duly seconded, the report of the President was approved and ordered embodied in the next annual printed report. Mrs. Sidney C. Borg spoke briefly of the activities of the Ladies' Auxiliary Society. Dr. George E. Vincent, President of the Rockefeller Founda- tion, delivered an address on "The Hospital and the Community." He spoke very highly of the scientific research work of the hospital, and the service the institution is rendering to the community. The meeting then proceeded with the election of directors, and upon the report of the tellers several of the gentlemen, whose terms had expired, were declared reelected.
The President's address, constituting part of the annual report, was in part as follows: "Since we last had the honor of meeting you here, Montefiore Hospital has reached its fortieth anniversary. It would seem, therefore, that this is a suitable time to give an account of the founding of this institution and a brief outline of its history. The year 1884 was notable in the Jewish world as the hundredth anniversary of the birth of the eminent English philanthropist, Sir Moses Monte- fiore, who was still living. Upon his estate near Ramsgate in Kent he received congratulations from men of all religious faiths. Members of
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the Jewish communities the world over celebrated in one way or an- other the centenary of the birth of their distinguished co-religionist. Many such celebrations were held in the United States. In this city as elsewhere it was felt that a merely ephemeral observance of the occasion was not sufficient. Accordingly, on the evening of February 4th, a number of leading Hebrews met in the schoolroom of the Nine- teenth Street synagogue to discuss the best method of doing lasting honor to Sir Moses Montefiore. Various suggestions, many of them excellent, were offered, but after a lengthy discussion, the meeting ad- journed without having come to a decision, leaving the further con- sideration of the memorial in the hands of a committee which was to report in three weeks.
"One of the suggestions was offered by Mr. Adolphus S. Solomons, who made an earnest plea for the establishment of a hospital for chronic invalids. So eloquently had he urged this idea that to many who were at the meeting his appeal seemed a veritable inspiration. The committee had been so constituted as to represent the various proposals which had been submitted, but at the second meeting which was held on March 3rd, it reported unanimously in favor of a hospital for chronic invalids, as suggested by Mr. Solomons. Beyond a doubt, the institution which resulted from this decision is the most enduring of all the memorials dedicated to the name of Moses Montefiore. Among those who were active in the organization of the hospital, and who were subsequently on the first Board of Trustees, were : Jacob H. Schiff, who was destined to be its President for thirty-five years; Sigmund M. Lehman, who is still an Honorary Director and always ready to manifest his interest in our work; and our beloved colleague, Henry Solomon, the dean of our Board, whose enthusiasm for the hospital and whose interest in the wards is as keen as it was forty years ago.
"The initial meeting of the Board of Directors was held in the autumn of 1884, and Mr. Henry S. Allen was elected the first President of the institution. At that meeting it was decided to inform Sir Moses of the organization of the hospital that bore his name. His reply, dated from East Cliff Lodge, Ramsgate, England, was in part as follows:
'Gentlemen,' wrote the renowned patriarch, 'I have the honor to ac- knowledge the receipt of your esteemed letter conveying to me your felicitations on the occasion of the Centennial Anniversary of my natal day ... I appreciate highly the token of friendship by which you have greatly honored me, and fervently pray that the Almighty may shield you and your families so as to enable you to continue your noble exer- tions in the cause of religion, in the cause of suffering humanity, and in the vindication of truth and justice'.
: "Three years prior to the founding of Montefiore Hospital, a bomb hurled by a nihilist ended the life of Czar Alexander II. Under that
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comparatively enlightened monarch Russia was beginning to enjoy the blessings of liberty. His death brought this policy to a sudden halt. Alexander III, who succeeded him, influenced by the narrow- minded and cruel Pobiedonostzieff, the procurator-general of the Holy Synod, entered upon a course fraught with terror and misery for mil- lions of human beings. It was Pobiedonostzieff's announced purpose to exterminate the Jews in Russia. The story goes that when he was asked how he expected to destroy four million people, he replied that he intended to convert one-third, to starve one-third, and to drive one- third from the country. If he really hoped to convert one-third, he was doomed to disappointment. The converts were very few. In other parts of his program, however, he was only too successful. How many of the persecuted fell victims to starvation will never be known, but Pobiedonostzieff's inhuman determination set in motion an exodus which in historic significance is second only to the exodus of the Bible and in numbers far exceeded those who made the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. When Montefiore Hospital was established there were less than one hundred thousand Jews in New York City. Within the next thirty years over one million five hundred thousand Jews from Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe came to our shores. This heavy influx imposed a correspondingly heavy duty upon American Jewry. Thanks, however, to the far-sighted men who had made this institution possible, Montefiore Hospital was ready to meet its responsibilities.
"The history of Montefiore falls into four epochs of unequal length. The first and shortest of these covered a period of only four years. As soon as it was decided to found a hospital, the work of organization proceeded vigorously, and the directors were able to dedicate a modest frame building on Sunday, October 26, 1884. This building stood at the corner of 84th Street and Avenue A. It had been obtained on lease for the moderate sum of $30 a month. It had a capacity of twenty-six beds. But the devotion of the directors was not measured by the physi- cal dimensions of their enterprise. So vital was their interest in the project they had launched that during the early days of the hospital, and for many years thereafter, they undertook to make all visits in con- nection with the investigations preliminary to the admission of patients. Nothing could show more vividly the seriousness with which they as- sumed the duty they had taken on themselves.
"At the very outset the demands upon the hospital were so great that only a small percentage of those in need of the service it offered could be accommodated. The directors saw at once that expansion of its facilities would have to be made as soon as possible. It was evident that the hospital must have a new building without delay. A plan to raise funds for this purpose culminated in a fair which was held in
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December, 1886, and resulted in net proceeds of $158,000. With the success of this undertaking, Montefiore Hospital entered upon its second epoch. December, 1888, found the institution in its new building at 138th Street and Broadway. In its new home the hospital accommo- dated one hundred and forty patients in contrast to the twenty-six which represented its capacity in the beginning, so rapidly had the institution grown in four years. And now the character and work of Montefiore Hospital received a striking recognition. The Hospital Saturday and Sunday Association, now the United Hospital Fund, ad- mitted the institution to membership. The first allotment of funds from the Association was the sum of $976, which was five per cent of the expenses of the hospital for that year. It may be of interest to note here that the allotment for 1924 was $52,000. But soon the old problem returned. Hardly five years had passed after the removal of the hospital to its new quarters, when again the directors found them- selves unable to make adequate provision for all or even for the larger part of those who begged to be admitted. Once more it was necessary to raise funds for building. In 1893, contributions to the amount of $80,000 were received for this purpose. With this sum a wing was constructed which contained room for one hundred and thirty-six beds, practically doubling the capacity of the hospital.
"Two years later another step forward was planned. Even with the improved arrangements patients suffering from incipient tuberculosis were cared for under favorable conditions. It was necessary to send them at the expense of the institution to various county hospitals. This situation suggested the idea of a country sanatorium which also make provision for convalescents who heretofore had been compelled to re- turn to an environment which made complete recovery impossible. In 1895 this idea began to take tangible form. Mr. Jacob H. Schiff and Mr. Lyman G. Bloomingdale contributed $25,000 each to form the nucleus of a fund for the erection of a country sanatorium. In 1897 a piece of land at Bedford Hills, consisting of one hundred and thirty- six acres, was purchased, together with a small frame building. In September of that year our Country Sanatorium opened its doors with accommodations for fifteen patients. But this was only the beginning of the sanatorium. New and larger buildings were planned. In May, 1901, these buildings, with a capacity of two hundred and twenty patients, were dedicated with impressive ceremonies. The speaker of the day was Theodore Roosevelt, then Vice-President of the United States and soon to become President. In the course of his address he gave utterance to a sentiment which deserves to be quoted in any his- tory of Montefiore Hospital. 'I have come here' said Mr. Roosevelt, 'to express to you the debt of obligation that the people of the United States are under to you, not only for the deed itself, but for the
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