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Matrons, Medics and Maladies: Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in the 1840s
'Fly on the wall' documentaries are currently popular on television. This book is a mid-nineteenth century written version. It follows the progress of those citizens of Edinburgh who turned up, for one reason or another, in the admission room of the city's Royal Infirmary. These people are all real, their notes being as fresh and lively as on the day they were written.
From the few remaining records of the old Infirmary in the 1840s it has been possible to put together a picture of the life of patients and staff, both in the wards and outside in the busy streets of Edinburgh at that time. In addition to patients, here are the eccentric surgeons, high-spirited house doctors, remarkable matrons and alarming nurses of the time. In spite of their individuality, however, these people provided the population of Edinburgh with care of such a high standard that Professor Best, an authority on Victorian Britain, is able to 'Edinburgh's hospital and dispensary services were predictably excellent in mid-Victorian times'.
From the few remaining records of the old Infirmary in the 1840s it has been possible to put together a picture of the life of patients and staff, both in the wards and outside in the busy streets of Edinburgh at that time. In addition to patients, here are the eccentric surgeons, high-spirited house doctors, remarkable matrons and alarming nurses of the time. In spite of their individuality, however, these people provided the population of Edinburgh with care of such a high standard that Professor Best, an authority on Victorian Britain, is able to 'Edinburgh's hospital and dispensary services were predictably excellent in mid-Victorian times'.
236 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1999
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August 8, 2024
Not sure why the cover isn't showing, but this was a history of the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. I bought it because it purported to be full of good stories, history mixed with anecdotes which is exactly what I love. Sadly, it didn't really deliver for me. Lots of excerpts from the various Infirmary log books, some newspaper clippings, but it was very bitty and had no analysis and very little context. A good starting point, to give you an indication of the types of people who worked there, but short of the more rounded picture I was looking for.
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