The Museum of Health Care (MHC) shows how Canadians have preserved health and managed disease, pain and suffering. The Museum strives to connect visitors of all ages with the experience of people in past times and provide context and perspective on today's health issues. Our blog is regularly updated with interesting and insightful entries by MHC staff and volunteers. Learn more about who we are and what we're working on. We welcome your feedback and comments.
Organized sports and bicycling were also popular. These activities were believed to assist recovery, as they broke up the monotony of asylum life. In the late nineteenth century, Rockwood Asylum underwent a drastic change in treatment philosophies. Begun under the guidance of the third Superintendent Dr. William Metcalf, and continued by Dr. Charles Kirk Clarke, … More Moral Treatment: A New Therapeutic Model
Clarke strongly believed in “moral treatment”, an approach to mental health based on humane treatment as well as scheduled days in a calm environment. August 13, 1885. Dr. William Metcalf, medical superintendent of Rockwood Asylum and his assistant, Dr. Charles Kirk Clarke, are making their usual morning rounds of the institution. They approach one of … More Moral Treatment and Nursing School: The Impact of Dr. Charles Kirk Clarke at Rockwood Asylum.
Though Ernest was a farmer, and—according to family—was not a particularly wealthy individual, he was lucky enough to acquire two full, well-made, advanced prosthetic legs. The history of an individual prosthetic limb can be difficult to trace, as good documentation is often lacking. The Museum of Health Care at Kingston has six prosthetic limbs in … More Getting a Leg Up: A Brief History of Prosthetics through the lens of our collection
In July of 1856 thirty-six acres of an estate west of Portsmouth Village, previously owned by politician John Cartwright, were purchased by the United Province of Canada East and Canada West. The intended purpose of the land? To become the home of a future asylum, intended to house both the “criminally insane” of Kington Penitentiary … More Curative Architecture: The Healthful Design of Rockwood Asylum
Whether it was dog sledding, hiking, driving the Dempster Highway to Tuk, attending Inuvik’s first Pride parade in -30 degree weather, or trying to resist buying all of the amazing handsewn and beaded crafts made by talented Inuvialuit locals, there were plenty of adventures to be had! Last year, I decided to try out a … More Profile of a Travelling Nurse: Inuvik
Profile of a travelling Nurse – KGH Nurse Sandra Milliken shares her experiences as a travelling nurse to the more remote regions of Canada. … More Profile of a Travelling Nurse: Labrador
“It took me less than 24 hours to fall irreversibly in love with the Yukon.” … More Profile of a Travelling Nurse: Whitehorse
What is the purpose of a museum? To help people understand the past? To show items that most people would not see? To preserve and display articles from the past so that we can better understand our present? To give a fuller picture of how life used to be? A museum can be all these things, but a museum, especially one with a more modern focus, can be so much more. … More A Trip Down Memory Lane
Considered by many as the founder of modern nursing, British social reformer Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) was one of the most well-known female voices on health care in the 19th century. In this blog entry, I outline what Florence Nightingale believed was the most important consideration of nursing – the ventilation and good air of a patient’s room – and will explore how this advice recurs and develops in the ensuing forty years in home advice manuals. … More Good Air and Bad Air: The Importance of Ventilation
Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management: A Complete Cookery Book (1861) was perhaps the most well-known and referred-to home advice manual of its time. It was originally published in 24 separate parts from 1859 to 1861, and then compiled as a bound book in 1861, soon becoming a staple in most Victorian homes. … More Domestic Nursing: An Introduction to Maintaining the Sick-Room
