Western General Hospital

This material is held atLothian Health Services Archive

  • Reference
    • GB 239 LHB13
  • Dates of Creation
    • 1930-1984
  • Name of Creator
  • Language of Material
    • English.
  • Physical Description
    • 2.7 shelf metres: bound volumes, papers

Scope and Content

Administration 1930-1984; plans and buildings 1954-1985; patients (bound volumes) 1930-1966

Administrative / Biographical History

Origins lie in Craigleith Hospital and Poorhouse (1868). This served as an Army hospital during World War One. In 1929, the Local Government (Scotland) Act was passed. When this came into effect a year later, all poor law hospitals were transferred to the administration of large burghs and counties. As a 200 bed municipal hospital it opened to the general public and teaching facilities were soon introduced. Between 1941 and 1949 part of the Western General was given over to the Polish School of Medicine at Edinburgh and became known as the Paderewski Hospital. In 1948 it became part of Edinburgh Northern Hospitals under the South Eastern Regional Hospital Board. In 1974 it was part of the North Lothian District of Lothian Health Board. In 1986 it became part of the Royal Victoria, Western and Northern General Hospital Unit of Lothian Health Board and in 1994 the Western General NHS Trust Hospital. Presently it is part of the Lothian University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Arrangement

Chronological within record class

Access Information

Normal 30 year and 75 year Scottish closure rules apply

Acquisition Information

Western General Admin and Community Medicine Specialists and J. Knowles, Medical Records Officer, Western General

Note

Compiled by Mike Barfoot and Jenny McDermott using existing handlists

Other Finding Aids

Manual item-level descriptive list available

Custodial History

Records held within the National Health Service prior to transfer

Accruals

Further accessions are expected

Related Material

Edinburgh Northern Hospitals Board of Management (LHB11) Edinburgh Northern Hospitals Board of Management (LHB11) North Lothian District, Lothian Health Board (LHB27) North Lothian District, Lothian Health Board (LHB27) Paderewski Hospital, Edinburgh University Archives Paderewski Hospital, Edinburgh University Archives Polish Medical School, Edinburgh University Archives

Bibliography

Eastwood, Martine and Jenkinson, Anne. A history of the Western General Hospital: Craigleith Poorhouse, military hospital, modern teaching hospital. Edinburgh: John Donald, 1995.