CONDITIONS AT GALLINGER MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1943

UNITED STATES SENATE,

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.
Washington, D. C.

The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10 a. m., in the committee room of the Committee on the District of Columbia, the Capitol, Senator Rufus C. Holman, presiding.

Present: Senators Holman; Bushfield; and Buck.

Present also: Mr. Sourwine, counsel for the committee.

Senator HOLMAN. The first formal meeting of the subcommittee of the Senate Committee for the District of Columbia will please come to order.

(The subcommittee had under consideration S. Res. 178 which is here printed in full as follows:)

[S. Res. 178, 78th Cong., 1st sess.]
RESOLUTION

Resolved, That the Senate Committee on the District of Columbia, or any duly appointed subcommittee thereof, is hereby authorized to investigate conditions at Gallinger Municipal Hospital, with particular reference to sanitation, food, diet, and treatment and care of tubercular patients: Provided, That such committee or subcommittee shall call upon the United States Public Health Service for such professional, technical, or other assistance as it may deem necessary for purposes of the investigation herein authorized.

Senator HOLMAN. By authority and direction of Senate Resolution No. 178 and by appointment by Senator McCarran, the Senate committee chairman, this subcommittee is charged with the duty of investigating present conditions at Gallinger Hospital, a Federal municipal institution, and presenting such recommendations relative to them as the committee may conclude in its judgment constructively to do.

This is not the first congressional investigation of Gallinger Hospital nor probably will it be the last; but we hope it will be factual in its findings, fair in its judgments and effectively constructive and helpful in its recommendations.

For the record, I desire to reiterate that our object is to bring about better care of the distressed and unfortunate patients who seek hospitalization at this federally conducted institution. It is not our purpose to prejudge anything or anybody nor to criticize or condemn unless the facts are found to warrant such action and then only for the purpose of correcting them for the benefit of the patients, the encouragement of good service, and the respect and dignity of

the Federal Government. Moreover, this committee will be very happy to discover persons connected with the hospital whose faithful interest, devotion to, and competence in, their duties are entitled to praise and encouragement.

Rather than to bring to light and possibly cause adverse public comment anything unnecessarily, we prefer to address our inquiry to the question, "Now, where do we go from here?"

At the first conference of the committee which was held immediately upon the receipt of formal notice of its appointment, the several members were each assigned to particular features of the investigation, in order to expedite the work of the committee which has been diligently active daily since.

To Senator Bushfield was assigned the onerous duty of directing the inquiry into administrative practises and related subjects. He has arranged for this meeting and will conduct the questioning of the witnesses.

I shall request Senator Buck to preside, that I may simultaneously occupy myself, at times, with other features of the investigation. Senator Buck, will you please take over?

Senator BUCK. Senator Holman, I want to thank you for the statement as chairman of our subcommittee, I think you make it perfectly clear what the purpose and objective of this meeting is.

I am now going to ask Senator Bushfield, whom I presume has a list of the witnesses that he may want to call and interrogate, if he will ask his first one to step forward.

Senator BUSHFIELD. Before doing that, Senator Buck, I want to swear the official reporter and the witnesses.

(Whereupon, the official reporter and the witnesses were duly sworn by Senator Bushfield.)

Senator BUSHFIELD. Senators Holman and Buck have made statements for the record in this hearing.

I want the witnesses to understand that this is not a trial in any sense of the word; they are not in court, and the members of this committee have no prejudice either for or against the institution that is being investigated.

As a matter of fact not a single one of this committee had ever heard of Gallinger Hospital when we were appointed to the committee, nor did we know any of the officials of the hospital.

Our only purpose is to seek the facts in connection with this institution.

The comptroller general of this district has made a report to the Commissioners which is serious in its purport. It has charged the violation of criminal statutes against certain individuals.

While this committee is not concerned with the criminal violation of any statute of the Congress, or regulations of this District, we are concerned as it applies to Gallinger Hospital in the administration thereof and in the maintenance thereof. That is the purpose of this hearing.

As has been so well stated by Senator Holman, we have no desire to punish or to persecute any individual, and will endeavor to refrain from that from time to time during this hearing. We are in search of facts and of all the facts in order that we may submit the report to the whole committee and in turn to the Congress of what we have found.