Royal Victoria Dispensary for Diseases of the Chest case notes, 1940-1957

Series

Identifier: LHB41 CC/2

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Pro forma case notes for patients examined in Royal Victoria Dispensary, with correspondence, reports, forms and other records noted where relevant. Sir Robert Philip's classification system for tuberculosis is often used in the case notes in place of a diagnosis of tuberculosis. The letter L, followed by a number, is used to describe the severity of the local lesion, while S, capital or lower case, indicates the severity of the systemic disturbance. Therefore, L1s indicates an early local process with equivalent systemic disturbance, while L3S indicates a case of extensive lung disorder.

Dates

Creation: 1940-1957

Language of Materials

English

Conditions Governing Access

Public access to these records is governed by UK data protection legislation, the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, and the current Scottish Government Records Management: NHS Code of Practice (Scotland). Whilst some records may be accessed freely by researchers, the aforementioned legislation and guidelines mean that records conveying sensitive information on named individuals may be closed to the public for a set time. Where records relate to named deceased adults, they will be open 75 years after the latest date referenced in the record, on the next 1 January. Case records of individuals below 18 years of age or adults not proven to be deceased will be open 100 years after the latest date recorded in the record, on the next 1 January. Further information on legislation and guidelines covering medical records can be found on the LHSA webpage.

LHSA encourages the use of these records for legitimate clinical, historical and genealogical research purposes, and records that are designated as closed can be consulted by legitimate researchers if certain conditions are met. Please contact the LHSA Archivist for more details regarding procedures on how you can apply for permission to view closed records. Telephone us on: 0131 650 3392 or email us at lhsa@ed.ac.uk

Biographical / Historical

The Royal Victoria Dispensary was opened as part of the Edinburgh Scheme of tuberculosis prevention and care in 1887 in Bank Street, Edinburgh. The outpatient clinic acted as the first point of contact for people suspected of having tuberculosis to be examined and diagnosed.

Extent

20603 items

Additional Description

Arrangement

Records have not been rearranged.

Physical Location

5.06

Related Materials

LHSA holds four related case note collections:

LHB41 CC/1 (Southfield Sanatorium Case Files)
LHB41 CC/3 (Regional Hospital Board National X-Ray Campaign Recall Letters)
LHB41 CC/3a (Regional Hospital Board National X-Ray Campaign Case Files)
LHB41 CC/4 (Royal Victoria Dispensary for Diseases of the Chest Case Files)

Bound patient records and administrative records of the Royal Victoria Dispensary, Hospital and Tuberculosis Trust are held by LHSA (LHB41), along with records of the Edinburgh Royal Victoria and Associated Hospitals Board of Management (LHB10).