County Heads Defend Farm, Fight Its Gradual Closing

              NEAT COUNTY FARM-A bl,ldget of $85,000 hu been nquest.d to care for the 85
persons .....ho are now in the county farm and hospital. located between Y.l. avenue and
Sheridan ro"d on 51st stre.t. Although both buildin')' dre <1ging, the home (at l.ft Iud the
hospit,1 lrightl both ar. neat ud clun .s ,re the grounds where inm"tes gather be"u'h
shade trees to t"lk and play dom;noe~. County conmis.ioners a'gue thai there .1"'''y1 will
I be a need for the home ud th"t " SU9gestion by Excise Board members th.t the home b. abolished gradually is impradical. !Tribune Staff Photol
:CountyHeads DefendFarm,
Fight Its Gradual Closing
AllhoUfh most !'Iltlenls fall
between 50 and 6.:i yun of are,
the lelual spin Is from 25 \0 jO
years. )'ounrer patients oftcn
are those with mcntal dllfleul.
lies or olher problcms and who
bll'e no one to cue for Ihem,
Most employu at the farm abo
receive room Ind board In addl·
tion to salarIes.
l:d.nros rllrlM aupport from
fellow netscr Curre 1.. Wat­klas
.bo cODtcDc1ed, "Social !Ie­curll)'
nd old ace ISslst:IDce
pannul:!I "hould take ure of
these people el'eDtuI1I1:'
Catfey .nd Disl. 3 Commis­siolU'r
Cbult.. \'. Shurtleff re-­torled
that tbtre are no Inmalea
1Il lhe farm .... ho rffeh e allY n­sistallte
checu.
"A.!I soon as an Inm.le becomes
eU.Il:lble for clUler of the thecu.
we lake ateps 10 help him eet on
tbe rolls and mo\e him frorn the
fum," Caffey said.
"We hl\'e man y people who
come 10 the tounly bome who are
Dot old enough to qualify for old
age usl.!!tance or IOClal security
and '''ti~ ha\e no oUler place to
co and no one 10 lake c:lre of
them." Caffey explaIned.
PursUing his obj«ll~e or cut·
ting the ~uest at SIS,OlIO for op­eration
of Ihe farm during the
195j--58 fiscal }ur. Edwards bIt
at the cost per pllient.
"With n a'!'crare of Il) pa·
tlents In the home and hltspllal
Ind aD upendllure Dr $80,000
per year, it 15 costinr us about
S;S per month for cach PI'
tlent," he calculated.
In 1940, It was eosUng S40,OOO a
year to lake care of 150 peoplc,
or about $27 I month elIch.
A weekcnd check at the farm
showed 51 resldenl.!l in the home
section alld 34 In the so-called
hosplUlI sectlon.
Shurtleff conceded that the
"hospital" 15 really little mOl'e
than a convalescent home, but
bolh be and Disl. I Commlsslontr
Frank O'Brien arj:(ued it would
COSI about S12S a month to keep
a paUent In private convalescent
homes
"If these paUents were not at
the eounty 'hospital':' Shurtleff
~ald, "they \lould have to be at
Hillcrest or SI. John's ,.
He cxplalned thu hospitalllll'
lion In an Ictulli bospltllJ would
be of IitUe benf'rll to most of the
patients, who, he ~aid. need onl}'
a pla~ 10 atay and someone to
admlllistt'r dally do.!lcs of medica.
tion.
The chC'C1l: O\'f'r the weekend
~bo" ed Ihe '·hospltal" p.tlenu
complained of \'ariou~ ailmeol.!l
Including di.bcte~. epilep~y, se­rulHy
and multiple sc:lerosis.
""to somctlmes ret. elIDCf>r
patieDt .ho Is In the .dullccd
.!Ilarc~:· one of tbe prattical
"but "'e bl\'C Done U preseol."
By JIM BOHNSACK No registered nurses are em-
A suggestion thal the county played and there Is Ilttle In the
farm budget be chopped gradu- WDY of hospItal eqUipment at
ally untllthe farm ceases to exist. the farm.
ran Into Immediate opposition Four practlcal nursC! - not
from County Commissioners Mon· registered practical nurses - are
day lIS they mN wit h Eltelse employed to operate the three
Board members In a bud~ct-cul.- elght·hour shifts. Two orderlies,
ting session. usually patients themselves, also
"We alwa}s will hal'e to hAve' arc hIred.
a county home." W. V. CaffCY,' Others of the Z3 regular em·
commission chaIrman Intt'rposrd. p]oycS Include II relief nurse, two or the 34 plltlents currently In
"The Jaw makes It mandatory housekeepers, five cooks, two the hospital. 12 lire bedfast lind
e take care of the poor lind we hlundresses, two farmers, a
always will have them with us." poult/1'man, a carpenter. an tn- 12 others nearly so. ~
EltcJse Chalrmlln Paul Ed- !l"ineer, a paloter. a matron and Althoug~ lackln( In real ho-wards.
who made the sllgi:cstlon, Ihe superintendent. Ipltal equIpment, the rooms and
argued "I Ihlnk the prople be· Four of these are patients. re- c: COUNTY 27
Jieve the prellSure should be ll:ept cch'!ni: some pay for their work. ~ee , page
on to hold !U'd1 Urtnl:~ u thp
counl)' {arm to .. mmlmum:'