VPRS 17482 Emergency Department Record Book

Full description

This Record Book was used to record the diagnosis and treatment of patients who attended the Emergency Department.

The patient information was recorded in a hand drawn column format; the volume was adapted from its original purpose as a minute book.

The column headings comprise: Date; Time; Name; Address; T. P. R. (temperature, pulse and respiration); Diagnosis; Treatment (acronym for which internal department was to provide treatment); Signature (by treating doctor).

Each patient was recorded in order of their time of arrival. Besides the person's name and address, the treating doctor recorded the patient's vital signs (usually only temperature and pulse), the doctor's diagnosis, acronym for which internal department (G.I.P. - Gynaecology In Patients, G.O.P. Gynaecology Out Patients, A.N. - Ante Natal, T. O.P. - Treated Out Patients, O.P. Out Patients, T. Treated) or other hospital (R.M.H. - Royal Melbourne Hospital) the patient was transferred to for treatment. If the person was not admitted their treatment was listed as home.

As the Emergency Department was ongoing function of the hospital, this volume is probably the extant remnant of a much larger sequence.


Series History
Prior to transfer to Public Record Office Victoria, the records in this series were maintained as part of the RWH Archives in RWH series number 0405.