THE BEDFORD ROW Lying-In Hospital opened more than 200 years ago, back in 1812, as a voluntary, philanthropic institution to cater to new Limerick mothers and their newborns.
The maternity hospital’s foundation was sparked by the generosity of a sole woman, referred to as a ‘Mrs White’, along with a £1,000 bequest – which would equal nearly €100,000 today.
One local publication in Limerick reported on the downward trajectory of the organisation beginning in the 1960s as austerity crept into the hospital’s financials.
Titled ‘The Bedford Row Bonanza‘, a piece published in October 1972 in The Limerick Socialist and edited by late Limerick political giant Jim Kemmy, strikes a chord similar to today’s headlines.
“The changed times have brought increased running expenses, and the cosy set-up is disturbed. The supply of maternity nurses has also begun to dry up as these nurses seek incremental, pensionable, and permanent jobs in health authority hospitals,” the article read.
According to the publication, officials from the Mid Western Health Board endorsed the movement of public funds into the private business to keep it operational.
“Without even a request for an enquiry or the production of a balance sheet, the elected members and officials of the Mid Western Health Board have unanimously recommended the payment of public money as a private hospital subsidy,” the writer hit out.
“Now we read that a public subsidy is being sought to keep the hospital going and to keep the owner doctors happy, with their profits intact.”
The writer noted that the “names of the Limerick doctors who acquired the hospital after the Hospitals Sweep grant” had been withheld.
The Hospitals Sweep grant, or the Irish Hospitals’ Sweepstake, was a private lottery created to fund charitable hospitals that lost a licensing bid for the national Irish lottery to An Post in 1986.
As suggested by the publication, such a funding scheme through capitation would mean private doctors supervising the distribution of public money in an opaque manner.
It was noted at the time that “very sympathetic consideration should be given to the call for aid, as they all knew of the work done by that hospital”.
Terry Forristal of the The Old Limerick Journal, also founded by Jim Kemmy, summed up the legacy of the Bedford Row Hospital in a 2006 edition of the paper just before the building was finally demolished:
“For over 140 years, Bedford Row had been the only maternity hospital in operation in Limerick. It was founded thanks to the generous bequest of a wealthy woman who wanted to help impoverished Limerick women giving birth,” he wrote.
“It continued to be managed almost exclusively by women, for no monetary return, until 1960. As Bedford Row is an important part of the social history of the city and in light of the recent demolition of the building, it is fitting that a plaque be erected to commemorate the important work and sacrifices made by Limerick women in the running the hospital.”
