JOURNAL OF THE NATIONAL MEDICAL ASSOCIATION Vol. XXII, No.3
(1930)

KENNEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
(Incorporated)

Newark, New Jersey

By JOHN A. KENNEY, M.D., President

        This little hospital is an apology for New Jersey because in this whole sovereign state not only is there no larger or better hospital, but with one exception it is the only effort within the state to afford hospital facilities for its colored population.

        Its physical properties consist of two buildings occupying seventy-four feet frontage on West Kinney street and running back a hundred feet.  The first of these two is a two and one-half story frame building with eighteen rooms, purchased in 1924.  This comprises the administrative building with offices, reception, treatment, and store rooms, laundry, dining room and dormitories for the employees.

        The second unit is the hospital proper.  This is a three-story modern fire-proof structure built of brick, steel, cement and stone and erected in 1927.  While the hospital is incorporated under the New Jersey laws for $50,000.00, the true value of buildings and land is around $75,000.00 with equipment in excess of $23,000.00.  It has a bed capacity for thirty patients.  Its doors were opened with one patient on September 1, 1927.   To date 941 patients have spent 14,514 days.  There have been 428 operations with 9 operative deaths.  There have been 83 births.  Graduate nurses are in attendance.  The hospital in general in its scope with medical, surgical, obstetrical, gynecological and physiotherapy services.  While the institution is privately owned and controlled, it is open to any and all members of the North Jersey Medical Society and courtesy privileges are extended to such others as may be vouched for by members of the staff of any of the regular hospitals in the city of Newark.

        On November 14, 1929, an out-patients' free clinic was opened under an organized staff of eleven physicians of Newark, Montclair, Orange, Elizabeth, and Jersey City.  Staff meetings are held monthly with a seventy-five to eighty per cent attendance.

        Among the services rendered may be mentioned the following: there have been 586 X-ray pictures made and 827 fluoroscopic examinations, 29 radium treatments given, and in the office and hospital combined during the past five years we have given 45,359 physiotherapy treatments.  We have made 1261 urinalyses and 29 blood counts, over 200 specimens for blood Wassermanns, biopsies, blood cultures and smears have been sent to other laboratories.

        We have given employment for various periods of time to four graduate resident physicians, five secretary-stenographers, twenty-nine nurses, and fifty-one other helpers.  The largest number on our pay roll at anyone time was fifteen.

        While the hospital is a private institution more than fifty per cent of our patients are semi-charity or charity.  It has no endowment nor is it under the Welfare Federation.  It is dependent upon the income from its patients.  In spite of the large amount of semi-charity and charity work which it is doing it has never called on the public for any contribution except through the Women's Auxiliary for the support of one free bed.

        The auxiliary is composed of a live, active body of women, without whose support we would feel a distinct loss.

        134 West Kinney St.