Belfast City Hospital - History - Fever Hospital

Fever Hospital

In 1849 all fever patients were removed from the wards of the Frederick Street Hospital and transferred to the Infirmary or Fever Hospital on the grounds of the current City Hospital. This decision meant reduced bed numbers in the main Belfast General Hospital but that the amount of surgery now done there increased. In addition to the "fever" patients, the Infirmary also agreed to take all patients with burns, and those with incurable illnesses to the point where they were as many as 1,338 patients in 1883.

The Fever Hospital treated outbreaks of cholera, small pox, tuberculosis, measles, diphtheria, typhoid, scarlet fever and rabies. The number of nurses grew over these years although they were often untrained. In 1867, there were fifteen paid nurses. In November 1884, Miss Ellie Pirrie was appointed Superintendent and Head Nurse. She knew Florence Nightingale and in December 1884, Miss Nightingale sent a Christmas present to Miss Pirrie for the children in the Infirmary. Shortly after she was appointed, the Guardians approved a uniform for the paid nurses, and a distinctive apron for the unpaid female attendants. Under Miss Pirrie, nursing training began for the first time in Belfast and the first person, Miss Craig was sent to Dublin to sit a nursing examination. Nurse Craig was appointed Superintendent in 1892.