Page 15 - Demo

U TW VPrior to the late 1800s, before the germ-theory was accepted as fact, hospitals were extremely dangerous places. At that time, erysipelas (a bacterial infection), typhus, and hospital gangrene were common %u201chospital diseases.%u201d During severe outbreaks, 20-40% of patients might die from one of these, or some other life-threatening contagion, caught after admission. No wonder wealthier citizens preferred to be treated in their own homes. Fortunately, from the mid-19th century to the mid-20thcentury, hospitals dramatically evolved from warehouses for the poor and dying, to locations offering cutting-edge medicine for all classes. In the beginning, wood was a popular choice for hospital furnishings, floors, and walls, but it was porous and difficult to clean. By the 1880s, materials that were more antiseptic, such as marble, mosaic tile, and enamel-painted plaster, gained favor. After World War I, asepsis, or the minimization of microorganisms by using inert, easy-to-clean %u201chospital grade%u201d materials, became the predominating goal, rather than a specific floor plan or style. Construction techniques also became important. For example, difficult-to-clean hollow walls with dark, stagnant, microbe-laden, inaccessible spaces gave way to solid-wall construction, which minimized air movement through minute cracks between rooms. And operating rooms were sealed to prevent air from entering from other parts of the building. Early hospital designs had emphasized natural lighting, natural air flow and ventilation%u2014which evolved into using more controllable artificial light as well as mechanical, fan-driven ventilation with ductwork to distribute fresh air efficiently. Soon, filtration and sterilization systems, to remove pathogens, were increasingly utilized. Unfortunately, this did not prevent disease transfer due to direct contact between patients and staff. Most hospitals were known as general hospitals%u2014treating all conditions and most people. However there was some racial and religious discrimination. In time, many became specialized, by treating specific diseases, or catering to a particular population%u2014children, or women, or members of specific religious denomination, ethnic, or racial group.Hospitalshospital |%u02c8h%u00e4%u02ccspidl| noun.An institution providing medical and surgical treatment and nursing carefor sick or injured people. ORIGIN: Middle English via Old French frommedieval Latin hospitale, neuter of hospitalis %u2018hospitable.%u2019