Appointees to Foreign Fields Doing Practical Work Before Going—Valuable Annex to Our Washington Sanitarium
By L. E. ELLIOTT, M. D.
PROBABLY you have never heard of our mission hospital, located in Washington, D. C.; for it is yet in its infancy, and no publicity has been given it. Originally we were running only a dispensary; but as the work grew, the way was most providentially opened for us to extend our usefulness by carrying on hospital work. In order to do this, we had to change our location. We secured the building shown in the cut, at a very reasonable rent; and our landlord was very liberal in making the improvements necessary in order that we might start a hospital.
INCREASING AND PROSPERING
Our work did not decrease by the change, as some predicted, but has materially increased in more ways than one. In the dispensary, we are having a much more intelligent class of people,—a class who are more appreciative of what is done for them.
We hold a clinic six days in the week,—every day but Saturday,—from one to three o'clock in the afternoon. In this department, we have had, up to the present time, 5,972 patients, to whom we have given 14,229 treatments. Not all these patients come from this section of the city. Many come from other portions, and some from out of the city.
We have all sorts of injuries to treat, all classes of diseases and their complications. Not long ago, a man came to the dispensary with what appeared to be a trivial bruise on his leg. He had come all the way from the Union Station, a mile and a half away, to seek us out. We treated his injury as we usually treat similar ones, with the expectation that it would soon heal. But we found that our case was prolonged. This gave us an opportunity to do some seed sowing. He became intensely interested in the Bible and its messages, and now we are watching for the harvest. On an average, we see each patient but three times; so the opportunities to start them aright are not very great.
MEDICAL MISSIONARY GETTING PRACTICAL WORK
We send our nurses out in this section to give these poor people treatment. This is where the best opportunity comes to speak of their souls' condition. Many of them have nothing with which we can give the simplest treatments. Their houses are destitute, and their children are hungry and almost naked. But we also have a better class that we treat. They have been much more appreciative of our efforts, and have responded much better to spiritual teaching. We are now in a position where we can put a Bible worker out among them, to see that their spiritual well-being is considered, as well as their physical.
Our dispensary and clinical hospital in charge of Dr. Elliott, Washington, D. C.
We have a threefold purpose in our work; namely, (1) to look after the spiritual and physical welfare of the patients, and to clothe and feed them when necessary; (2) to give our foreign appointees an opportunity to become familiar with the work before they enter the foreign fields; and (3) to give our nurses a training in obstetrics, treating the sick in their homes, and Bible work, so that when they go out, they will be true medical missionaries.
Our work was started by donations, and we equipped the institution as we were able. At the present time, we are quite thoroughly equipped, and are self-supporting. About twenty-five missionaries have taken a training here, and are now located in India, China, South Africa, and South America. Some in India have started dispensaries, and are able to do a good work. Thus our work has been duplicated many times. We are glad our work has been so blessed that it has grown into the present institution, and that we are able to help many different classes of people in our small hospital and dispensary.
