Descriptive List of the Archive of St.Finbarr’s Hospital/ South Cork County Home and Hospital
city and county managers. Hospital services became General Institutional and Specialist Services and eligibility was extended to a much wider range of users, related no longer to individual means but to membership of 4 broad classes: those insured for social welfare, persons with family incomes of less than £600 per year, farmers with farms valued under £50, and those outside these groups who could demonstrate 'undue hardship'. Some groups were entitled to services without charge, statutory charges (6 shillings, later 10 shillings per day) were introduced for others, and higher charges could be made for hardship cases. The new services involved more responsibility by local authorities for the cost of treating patients. Maternity and child care services were also expanded. The dispensary system was transferred from the public assistance code to the health authorities, and improvements were made to the governance of county homes, the payment of an allowance to disabled persons, and the boarding out/ fostering of children. In Cork, the complex of public health and assistance and mental hospital authorities remained until a unified city and county Cork Health Authority was established by the Health Authorities Act 1960. In 1960, the total bed complement of St.Finbarr's was 1,185 made up of medical 139, surgical 119, maternity/neo-natal 70, paediatric 65, fever 84, and county home 708.
The State Lands (Workhouses) Act 1962 transferred former workhouse lands to the local authorities (Cork Health Authority in this case).
The local authority administration of health services remained until March 1971 when the new regional health boards, including the Southern Health Board, were set up under the Health Act 1970.
Archival History The majority of the Cork County Home and Hospital archive was transferred to CCCA by the Southern Health Board in c1975. Another accession was transferred in 2009.
CONTENT AND STRUCTURE
Scope and Content Archive of the South Cork County Home and Hospital later known as Saint Finbarr's Hospital, previously Cork Union Workhouse/Cork District Hospital. Records of Managerial Correspondence and Orders, such as, Matron's Correspondence 1939 – 1953, Copy Managers Orders, South Cork Public Assistance and Hospitals 1944- 1945.
©Cork City and County Archives 2019
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