Museum of health care
Encyclopedia
The Museum of Health Care is located in Kingston, Ontario
, Canada
. It is situated in the Ann Baillie Building, a National Historic Site of Canada and former residence for nursing
students at the Kingston General Hospital
's School of Nursing. The School of Nursing closed in 1974, after the Ontario provincial government
transferred the training of nurses to colleges and universities. In 1995, the Museum of Health Care was relocated to the Ann Baillie Building. It is the only museum in Canada dedicated to the history of health and health care.
One of the largest collections of medical and healthcare artefacts in Canada, the Museum of Health Care at Kingston is home to a wide-range of artefacts and archival documents and photographs from surgical tools to laboratory instruments
documenting how people have preserved health and managed disease, pain, and suffering from the late 18th century to the present day. The Museum strives to connect visitors with the experience of people in past times and provide context and perspective on contemporary health issues. The Museum serves the general public, practitioners, students, and historians through exhibitions, interpretive programs, and special events throughout the year.
and Gynaecology
, Queen’s University, the Museum of Health Care was born in 1991 when it began to build its collections of medical and general health objects and archives from across Canada.
The Museum relocated to its permanent home in the former nursing-student residence at Kingston General Hospital in 1995. The historic Ann Baillie Building is a beautiful 1904 Beaux-Arts style limestone
structure and National Historic Site commemorating the history of nursing education in Canada. The Museum is a non-profit corporation and registered charity and has had a Board of Directors since 1996.
The Museum strives to preserve the material history of the medical and healthcare past with the goal of enhancing public understanding of the history of health and health care, particularly in Canada. The Museum acquires, conserves, researches, displays, and interprets artefacts that help to tell these stories. The Museum also serves as a primary resource for scholarly work in the history of health care.
Museum galleries are located both in the Ann Baillie Building and in a network of Outreach Galleries in healthcare centres in Kingston.
The Museum also has a commitment to scholars: the Museum benefits from the presence of the Hannah Chair, History of Medicine at Queen's University, Kingston General Hospital Archives, Queen’s University Archives, and Bracken Health Sciences Library
at Queen’s University.
s and archival documents, dating from the 18th century to the present. There are approximately 30,000 items in the artefact and archival collections.
The Museum’s collections include a wide range of artefacts including medical, surgical, and laboratory instruments, commemorative objects, and patient care items. Some of the larger collections feature artefacts from the areas of anesthesiology, renal dialysis, orthopaedics, cardiology
, patent medicines, nursing
, and X-ray
.
Significant artefacts include:
·Melrose New Electronic Products Ltd. Extracorporeal Heart and Lung machine with oxygenator, ca. 1958
·“Kingmed” dialysis
machine designed and produced at Kingston General Hospital, 1967. Last surviving model.
·A large collection of cardiac pacemakers, 1950s – 1990s
·Prostheses collection (hip, elbow, knee, leg), c.1920-1975.
·Iron lung built at the Hospital for Sick Children
, Toronto during a polio outbreak, 1937. Believed to be the last surviving unit in Canada.
·A rare Waite & Bartlett electrostatic generator unit, circa 1910. Used for electrotherapy
treatment and early X-ray imaging and treatment.
·A rare collection of medical moulages, (wax gynaecological and obstetrical anatomical teaching models), produced in Kingston, Ontario, 1940s by artist Marjorie Winslow under the guidance of Dr. Edwin Robertson of Queen’s University.
·Microscope
used by Dr. James B. Collip.
·Over 750 items in the collection of Canadian nursing uniforms, documents, photographs, and memorabilia, 1880s to 2000.
·Over 2700 objects in the Museum’s collection of drug containers and pharmacy objects (late 18th century to late 20th century).
·4000-item collection of medical artefacts from the former Academy of Medicine, Toronto, including:
·Army surgeon’s regulation instrument case, by Gardner, Stodart, circa 1812. A field set belonging to Dr. Henry Grasett, surgeon-in-chief to forces during the War of 1812
·A Mayer & Meltzer carbolic steam sprayer, circa 1870. Technology developed by Dr. Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister for sterilizing operating rooms.
·Antiseptic midwifery washbasin, 18th century. Used at the first obstetrics clinic at Vienna University Hospital during the time of Dr. Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis.
The museum includes both on-site and off-site exhibits, focusing on the development of medicine
and health care
, in its operations. Also in operation, is a walking tour, created in partnership with the Kingston General Hospital, of the Kingston General Hospital National Historic Site of Canada.
, CHIN
, and Virtual Museum of Canada
.
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is situated in the Ann Baillie Building, a National Historic Site of Canada and former residence for nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
students at the Kingston General Hospital
Kingston General Hospital
The Kingston General Hospital is a teaching hospital affiliated with Queen's University located in Kingston, Ontario. The hospital is a partner within Kingston's university hospitals, delivering health care, conducting research and training health care professionals.As the oldest public hospital...
's School of Nursing. The School of Nursing closed in 1974, after the Ontario provincial government
Government of Ontario
The Government of Ontario refers to the provincial government of the province of Ontario, Canada. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867....
transferred the training of nurses to colleges and universities. In 1995, the Museum of Health Care was relocated to the Ann Baillie Building. It is the only museum in Canada dedicated to the history of health and health care.
One of the largest collections of medical and healthcare artefacts in Canada, the Museum of Health Care at Kingston is home to a wide-range of artefacts and archival documents and photographs from surgical tools to laboratory instruments
Laboratory equipment
Laboratory equipment refers to the various tools and equipment used by scientists working in a laboratory. These include tools such as Bunsen burners, and microscopes as well as speciality equipment such as operant conditioning chambers, spectrophotometers and calorimeters...
documenting how people have preserved health and managed disease, pain, and suffering from the late 18th century to the present day. The Museum strives to connect visitors with the experience of people in past times and provide context and perspective on contemporary health issues. The Museum serves the general public, practitioners, students, and historians through exhibitions, interpretive programs, and special events throughout the year.
Biographical Note
First conceived in 1988 by founder Dr. James Low, Professor Emeritus of ObstetricsObstetrics
Obstetrics is the medical specialty dealing with the care of all women's reproductive tracts and their children during pregnancy , childbirth and the postnatal period...
and Gynaecology
Gynaecology
Gynaecology or gynecology is the medical practice dealing with the health of the female reproductive system . Literally, outside medicine, it means "the science of women"...
, Queen’s University, the Museum of Health Care was born in 1991 when it began to build its collections of medical and general health objects and archives from across Canada.
The Museum relocated to its permanent home in the former nursing-student residence at Kingston General Hospital in 1995. The historic Ann Baillie Building is a beautiful 1904 Beaux-Arts style limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
structure and National Historic Site commemorating the history of nursing education in Canada. The Museum is a non-profit corporation and registered charity and has had a Board of Directors since 1996.
The Museum strives to preserve the material history of the medical and healthcare past with the goal of enhancing public understanding of the history of health and health care, particularly in Canada. The Museum acquires, conserves, researches, displays, and interprets artefacts that help to tell these stories. The Museum also serves as a primary resource for scholarly work in the history of health care.
Museum galleries are located both in the Ann Baillie Building and in a network of Outreach Galleries in healthcare centres in Kingston.
The Museum also has a commitment to scholars: the Museum benefits from the presence of the Hannah Chair, History of Medicine at Queen's University, Kingston General Hospital Archives, Queen’s University Archives, and Bracken Health Sciences Library
Bracken Health Sciences Library
The Bracken Health Sciences Library at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, occupies two floors of Botterell Hall. It offers complete library services and its staff are committed to excellent user service...
at Queen’s University.
Collections
The museum has an extensive collection of artifactCultural artifact
A cultural artifact is a term used in the social sciences, particularly anthropology, ethnology, and sociology for anything created by humans which gives information about the culture of its creator and users...
s and archival documents, dating from the 18th century to the present. There are approximately 30,000 items in the artefact and archival collections.
The Museum’s collections include a wide range of artefacts including medical, surgical, and laboratory instruments, commemorative objects, and patient care items. Some of the larger collections feature artefacts from the areas of anesthesiology, renal dialysis, orthopaedics, cardiology
Cardiology
Cardiology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the heart . The field includes diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart disease and electrophysiology...
, patent medicines, nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
, and X-ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
.
Significant artefacts include:
·Melrose New Electronic Products Ltd. Extracorporeal Heart and Lung machine with oxygenator, ca. 1958
·“Kingmed” dialysis
Dialysis
In medicine, dialysis is a process for removing waste and excess water from the blood, and is primarily used to provide an artificial replacement for lost kidney function in people with renal failure...
machine designed and produced at Kingston General Hospital, 1967. Last surviving model.
·A large collection of cardiac pacemakers, 1950s – 1990s
·Prostheses collection (hip, elbow, knee, leg), c.1920-1975.
·Iron lung built at the Hospital for Sick Children
Hospital for Sick Children
The Hospital for Sick Children – is a major paediatric centre for the Greater Toronto Area, serving patients up to age 18. Located on University Avenue in Downtown Toronto, SickKids is part of the city’s Discovery District, a critical mass of scientists and entrepreneurs who are focused on...
, Toronto during a polio outbreak, 1937. Believed to be the last surviving unit in Canada.
·A rare Waite & Bartlett electrostatic generator unit, circa 1910. Used for electrotherapy
Electrotherapy
Electrotherapy is the use of electrical energy as a medical treatment In medicine, the term electrotherapy can apply to a variety of treatments, including the use of electrical devices such as deep brain stimulators for neurological disease. The term has also been applied specifically to the use of...
treatment and early X-ray imaging and treatment.
·A rare collection of medical moulages, (wax gynaecological and obstetrical anatomical teaching models), produced in Kingston, Ontario, 1940s by artist Marjorie Winslow under the guidance of Dr. Edwin Robertson of Queen’s University.
·Microscope
Microscope
A microscope is an instrument used to see objects that are too small for the naked eye. The science of investigating small objects using such an instrument is called microscopy...
used by Dr. James B. Collip.
·Over 750 items in the collection of Canadian nursing uniforms, documents, photographs, and memorabilia, 1880s to 2000.
·Over 2700 objects in the Museum’s collection of drug containers and pharmacy objects (late 18th century to late 20th century).
·4000-item collection of medical artefacts from the former Academy of Medicine, Toronto, including:
·Army surgeon’s regulation instrument case, by Gardner, Stodart, circa 1812. A field set belonging to Dr. Henry Grasett, surgeon-in-chief to forces during the War of 1812
·A Mayer & Meltzer carbolic steam sprayer, circa 1870. Technology developed by Dr. Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister for sterilizing operating rooms.
·Antiseptic midwifery washbasin, 18th century. Used at the first obstetrics clinic at Vienna University Hospital during the time of Dr. Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis.
The museum includes both on-site and off-site exhibits, focusing on the development of medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
and health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
, in its operations. Also in operation, is a walking tour, created in partnership with the Kingston General Hospital, of the Kingston General Hospital National Historic Site of Canada.
Tours
Current details of the Museum's guided tours and education programs can be found on the The Museum of Health Care websiteAffiliations
The Museum is affiliated with: CMACanadian Museums Association
The Canadian Museums Association is a national organization for the promotion of museums in Canada.The Canadian Museums Association is the national organization for the advancement of the Canadian museum sector, representing Canadian museum professionals both within Canada and internationally. The...
, CHIN
Canadian Heritage Information Network
The Canadian Heritage Information Network is a Canadian government-supported organization that provides a networked interface to Canada's heritage, largely through the World Wide Web. It aims to give access to Canada's heritage for both Canadians and a worldwide audience, by supporting the...
, and Virtual Museum of Canada
Virtual Museum of Canada
The Virtual Museum of Canada is Canada's national virtual museum. With a directory of over 3,000 Canadian heritage institutions and a database of over 600 virtual exhibits, the VMC brings together Canada's museums regardless of size or geographical location.The VMC includes virtual exhibits,...
.