A Study of Social Needs Significant in Emergency Admissions As Seen in Twenty-Six Cases Admitted the Emergency Department of Saint Vincent's Hospital of the City of New York, 1950-1951
Abstract
Since the turn of the Century medicine has been concerned with the social aspects of illness both as causative factors and as elements in the treatment process. This social concept has gradually, though forcefully, asserted itself into the general voluntary hospital so that now one sees the Social Service Department as a necessary adjunct to the best functioning of the hospital. Likewise, through the years there has been a change in the role of the general hospital. Between 1840 and 1900 the purpose of a general hospital was to supply mere food, shelter and meager medical care to the pauper sick, to armies and to those infected with contagious diseases. With the rapid growth and progress of the modern hospital, a new concept of its purpose has evolved. Today, the general hospital provides the essential services necessary for the adequate treatment of patients who are admitted for care. Admissions are limited to certain types of illnesses and the stay is usually of short duration. The hospital provides general medical, surgical, obstetrical and related services. The chronically ill must be cared for in nursing homes and the aged must be maintained in homes established for that purpose. Relief programs and municipal shelters are provided for the poor and the homeless.
Subject Area
Health care management|Public health|Social work
Recommended Citation
Dillon, Mary Raymonda, "A Study of Social Needs Significant in Emergency Admissions As Seen in Twenty-Six Cases Admitted the Emergency Department of Saint Vincent's Hospital of the City of New York, 1950-1951" (1952). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI30509587.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI30509587
