Portal:Featured Article Of The Week
Featured Article Of The Week
Zambarano Hospital
Experience in other parts of the nation showed the advantages of open-air treatment for the early stages of the disease. Separating these patients from the rest of the population would minimize the spread of tuberculosis. The state then considered the feasibility of building and maintaining a state sanatorium. A sanatorium was built in the northwest corner of the state, on 250 acres of land, at Wallum Lake. The superintendent was Dr. Harry Lee Barnes. Under his direction the sanatorium gave patients access to fresh air along with a regular schedule, good food and medical attention.
Initially the sanatorium was overwhelmed with prospective patients. In 1909, Barnes refused admission for 181 patients because their disease was too far advanced. Over 200 patients needed hospital care. Still, Barnes was criticized for admitting too many patients and for not always allowing the examining physician to have the final decision concerning the admittance of potential patients. Barnes is also noted for refusing to allow men and women patients to mingle. The care offered by the sanatorium was likely one of the factors that led to a decrease in Rhode Island’s death rate from tuberculosis. It fell from 198.5 in 1907 to 131.3 in 1920.
A hospital to treat advanced cases of tuberculosis was established on the WallumLake property in 1917. In the 1930’s they added a nurses home, two other buildings for staff and also the Wallum Lake House, which included a kitchen, bakery, auditorium, chapel and pharmacy. Until 1936 the sanatorium also had a vegetable garden, hennery and piggery. These were constructed by patients and employees. By 1940 the original buildings were destroyed, mainly because they were considered a fire hazard. Click here for more...
