Edinburgh Royal Maternity Hospital and Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion
Scope and Contents
LHB3: Management 1856-1958; finance 1876-1974; administration 1859-1988; staff 1892-1983; Queen Mary Nursing Home 1913-1970; patients (bound records) 1844-1986; patients (unbound records) 1933-1954; LHB3A: nursing 1768-1994
Dates
- Creation: 1768-1994
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
Opened in 1879 as Edinburgh's first planned maternity hospital building and preceded by the General Lying in Hospital (1793) and its variously named successors. Funded by a collection to commemorate Sir James Young Simpson's contribution to obstetrics. Began first ante-natal clinic in Britain (1915); a post-natal clinic followed in 1926, the same year it amalgamated with the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion opened in 1939. From 1939 the "Simpson" was directly managed by the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh as one of its grouped hospitals and became part of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh National Health Service Trust Hospital in 1994. As a result of hospital re-organisation in 1999, it was placed in the Lothian University Hospitals NHS Trust.
Extent
85.55 shelf metres: bound volumes and papers
Arrangement
Chronological within record class
Other Finding Aids
Manual item-level descriptive list available
Custodial History
Records held within the National Health Service prior to transfer
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Mrs Sutherland, Records Officer, SMMP October 1983; LHB3A Monica Thompson, Professional Development Office, SMMP, July 1997
Accruals
Further accessions are expected
Bibliography
- Title
- Edinburgh Royal Maternity Hospital and Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Lothian Health Services Archive Repository
Centre for Research Collections
Edinburgh University Library
George Square
Edinburgh EH8 9LJ Scotland
+44 (0)131 650 3392
lhsa@ed.ac.uk