The centenary of Ivy Cottage, Belfast City Hospital.

Pregnant women have been delivered in the Belfast City Hospital since 1842. These first patients were destitute inmates of the Workhouse. Over a number of years many reports of maternal deaths due to puerperal sepsis had been presented to the Board of Governors. At a meeting in August 1892 the members agreed to build a new hospital for maternity patients. This unit consisted of three wards, each containing ten beds, two rooms for resident nurses, a kitchen and "all necessary accommodation". The hospital, named Ivy Cottage, was opened in May 1893.1 Dr Robert Hall, Visiting Medical Officer, urged the Guardians to employ nursing staff exclusively for the new hospital. This was agreed. The unit was staffed by one sister and two nurses-one for day duty and one for night duty. Sister Douglas was appointed at a salary of £;26.00 annually until her retirement in 1933 at the age of 72 years. She then lived with many other retired nurses in Gardner Robb Hospital until her death in 1948. Few records of the work of the unit are available. The earliest report to the Guardians included the period from September 1898-September 1890, during which time 251 patients had been delivered. There were three maternal deaths, five stillbirths and three infant deaths. One patient had several eclamptic fits. After delivery, mothers were carried in a 'stretcher' of blankets to the convalescent wards. When Jubilee Maternity Hospital opened in 1935, Ivy Cottage was converted into a 'septic ward' (Jubilee IV) in which all women with puerperal sepsis were nursed. The number of beds was reduced to 20. The Sister in charge, Miss A Harron, was paid 5;75.00 annually. During 1945, there was a serious outbreak of gastroenter-itis among the babies in the Jubilee Hospital so the entire hospital was closed and all the patients transferred to Purdysburn Fever Hospital. In that year, Dr Muriel Frazer was appointed to the staff as a Visiting Medical Officer to help with the increased clinical work.