First of a new series of fact sheets giving information about the social, economic and physical status of the aged has been issued by the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The first fact sheet reports that, although the number of persons aged 65 and over is 14 times as large as it was 90 years ago when the census reports first used this age break, the total population is only 42 times as large. In 1870, the 1.2 million persons over 65 accounted for only 2.9 per cent of the total population. By 1960, this age group had grown to almost 16.6 million and represented about 9.2 per cent of the total population. In 1870, every 35th person was over 65; in 1960 it was every 11th person. The number of persons aged 65 or over has grown at an annual average rate of about 31⁄2 per cent since 1920. At the time, the growth rate for the total population has been less than 2 per cent for the past 50 years. Growth rate for the older population is also slowing down and will probably account for no more than 10 per cent of the expected 240-260 million population expected by 1980. PATIENT rooms have been designed and furnished to lessen the feeling of being in an institution. Each room has large windows to give a better view of the outdoors. offset corridor has been designed with a series of skylights to further reduce the institutional corridor feeling and to provide the patient with natural light and sun. The walls of these bays are painted a cheerful yellow. The building is elevated to provide maximum use of high-cost city land. Patients get a better view of the street activity, and space under the building allows for service facilities, a recreation room, and physician parking. The recreation room was purposely placed in the basement with a close view of the street to encourage the exercise afforded by the use of the stair. An elevator connects to the main floor from the ambulance entrance. The recreation and sitting areas adjoin the main entrance and nurses' station, thus giving the ambulatory patient the choice of an active area at the front of the building or a quiet area off the rear garden. Both of these rooms are under the direct supervision of the nurses' station. The rear garden has a pass-through to the kitchen to facilitate the serving of meals and snacks on the outdoor patio. The nurses' station is constructed of redwood board and batten similar to the exterior of the building to avoid the aseptic look common to most nurses' stations. A planter provides additional visual interest. Construction cost, including such features as piped oxygen and audiovisual nurses' call system to each bed, was $16 per square foot, or $4000 per bed. TO AVOID an aseptic look, the nurses' station is constructed of redweed board and batten. A planter adds to the attractiveness of the decor of the nurses' station. 539 Hospital annex answers needs of long-term care patients EN-YEAR-OLD Gibson Com Tmunity Hospital, a 48-bed short-term institution, is situated in a rural community of 3400. The service area of the hospital, approximately 12 miles in radius, contains nine smaller communities. Total population served is about 7800 persons. To meet the needs of an increasing number of long-term patients, the hospital in 1961 opened an annex designed specifically for long-term nursing care and rehabilitation and for care and treatment of the aged. The structure was designed to provide as homelike an atmosphere as possible in keeping with requirements for efficient operation. The lounge opens onto a paved terrace and the dining room overlooks a garden court. Insulated glass is used throughout, with glareproof glass on southern exposures to assure comfort for patients who like to sit near the window. Most rooms have been planned so that each bed is near a window. The building is completely air-conditioned, with individual room and space control. The upper level facilities include a bed patient unit of 14 beds, an ambulatory-convalescent unit of 26 beds (four private rooms), a physician consultation room, a resident treatment room, administrative offices, and the normal utility spaces. The lower level provides for physical therapy and indoor recreational activities. Storage areas and mechanical equipment are situated on this level. The storage areas can be converted to fallout shelters with minimum effort. Both levels of the annex are connected directly with the hospital. Food is prepared in the hospital kitchen and transported to the serving kitchen of the new building. Bed patients are served in their rooms and convalescent and ambulatory patients are served either in their rooms or in the dining room. RENDERING of the aerial view of the Gibson Community Hospital Annex, Gibson City, Ill. 98-638 0-63-10 |