Rockefeller Archive Center

Methods and problems of medical education. (610.7 MET

610.7 MET)

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Date: 1924-1932

METHODS AND PROBLEMS OF

MEDICAL EDUCATION

(TJm'l'lI SEmJo;s)

DIVISION Oli' MEDICAL EDUCA'l 'lON

Tr-IE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION

61 Broadway, New York, N. Y., U. S. A.

1928

'ROCKEFELLER ArsH:VE CENTER

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INSTITUTE OF GENERAL EXPERIMENT AL PATHOLOGY

ROY AL UNIVERSITY OF FLORENCE

BY

PROFESSOR A LmSSANDRO LusTIG DIRECTOR

DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDING

The Institute of General :Experimental Pathology and Bacteriology of the Royal University of Florence was inaugurated in the year 1923, but the construction was begun liefore the outbreak of the war (1914) wh ich in­terrnpted all bu il ding act ivities. A ]aw issued by Parliament in 1!)13 provided for the erect ion in accord­a nce with th e latest conceptions of modern sanitary engineering of a medical faculty in t he Univer~ity, in ­cluding all the biological institutes and some climes, to be built

011 an area of some eight hectares in one of the

most picturesque and hea!U1}' districts in Florence where some small buildings had already been erected for the Hospital of Santa Maria l\'uova of Florence.

The constructions for the B iological Institute, in -cludm g t he Institute of H ycriene General Aii t cl , . . . . . "' , , a orny, a11 11 ore11s1c Med1crne, have already bee11 beo·t 1 I . ·I r . · . . , . · "11, w101eas, t 1e 11st1tute ol C,eneral Pathology is completed. T he plans Jor the other b10logical institutes have been pre­pared bu t have not yet been approved.

T he buildi11g for general l}atholocry co,,ei·s . . · · o . ,· an area ol approx11natcly 1,750 square mcter c• ]i'ac1• • t i . . ,;,, ng · 1e 1l C\V

hospital square it has an eastern exJ)Ostii·e 4 ~)◊ t ti . · ' • · , ·, 0 SOU . I-

ward and a plamrnetr ical fo rma.tion in the form of a u, with open courtyard to give natural light to the various

labornton es. The wings of the buildin°· are on one fl oo1· 1 "0 t "' , .. . v me ers

above t he ground and have covered terraces and sunny

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[NSTITUTE OF GENERAL EXPERIMENTAL PATHOLOGY 85

J<'tG. ;j. - r\SS LS' l'AN'J'S ' L ABOHA'l'OHY

.1.,. · . f two stories with pavements. T he center bu t 1..1mg is O

· 1 d .- , I t . l used as O gmgs

basement, ground fl oor, an c en 1 eso ·

for the assisting staff._ 1 . ,1. · . o-• ine<l by I I ·11· t ·ance to w11c 11:-; .,,,1 . n the center JUI c 111g, en 1 . , l k

t .1 1 the students c oa -a wide staircase are the ves 1 JU e, · t · . 120

' I 1 ·ture-room sea rng room, t he porters' (]Uarters, t 1e ec

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. • l a room ·or ie pupils, an mstrument room , anc '. strations of microscopic preparatwns. <l. t ·'s study

. l 1-1 . ·y the u ec 01 . In the r ight wmo- are t 1C 1 JI ai. ' . , 1 , .. _

0 • • . the assistants auorn

and laboratory, the dark I oom, 1 t , l lJor·a tor" d a stuc en s a J

tory, t he chemistry room, an provided with cement and til ed benches. ·t , . n

f t rilizat10n, as 01 e1001 In the left wing is a room · or 8 e . l 'tl , :mental anuna s w1 1

for glassware, a room for e~pen t 1. . llJport aud • t· , n cemen ,o Sl

~pecial tubular constru~ ions 1 . als the vivisection

isolate the cages of the 1_nfected amm l ·tuclents enroJled room, and a laboratory fo r the medtca 8

for the courses. 11 ti.rig· With , . . l ~~~a~ .

The van ous laboratones 111' f 11 ·no- degrees . . f r.o C the O OWi ,:, ' a mmnnum temperature o :.> • t'b le 14° in may be obtained: 12° in the entrance ves

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the corridors and 18° in the laboratones. '

The cubature of the whole building is 5,800 cubic meters, the calorics necessary for heating are 105,000. These are transmitted by ca.lcul ating the loss snRtained in the pipes whi ch is 15,000, so that the hourly estimate comes to 120,000 calories. T he boiler installed is of the Ciclone type and covers an area of M.30 square meters, the hourly output being 8,391 ca.lories per square meter. The total area of the rad iators in operation is 248.60 square meters. The distribution is from above and is made by means of two pipes of 3½ to 3 in ches in

diameter. The tubing system has been calculated by the Riet­

schel-Brabbe theory at a vertical length of the maximum circuit of 210 meters with a possible pressure of a=

43 limiting the loss of pressure at 0.20 m / m per lineal meter so that the almost constn,nt velocity of the water is between 0.12 and 0.10 per second . The whole plant working in harmony in every part circulates when the water in the boiler reaches 4,5° so that the grcn.tcst

economy is assm e<l. The drainage is of the double channel system, the m in

water being led in special surface channels whi ch end

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INSTITUTE OF GENERAL EXPERIMENTAL PATHOLCGY 87

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FIG. 8 .- LIDC'l'URE-ROOM

with appropriate hydraulic intersections in the principal oval collector which receives the refuse drainage of the laboratory, conducted in a tubular system of increasing diameter to the drains of the I<'lorentine Hospital, and hence to the o·eneral sewer of the city of Florence. The plans of the biological institutes and of the hospital have been drawn up by Mr. Italo Guidi, architect and engi­neer , who has been in superintendence of the general Work of construction with Professor A. Lustig.

The expenses for the construction and partial fur­nishing (part of the furnishings and equipment of the old Institute has been utilized) reaches the sum of approxi­mately a million and a half lire, but it is to be noted that at the present day the cost in Florence would be at least

five million lire. ·

METHOD OF TEACHING The teaching of general experimental pathology in

Florence occupies one scholastic year, frorn Novemb~r 1st to July and is given three times weekly, whereas lll

other Italian universities it is given twice weekly. Students of the third year attend these courses (in

Italy the study of medicine takes six vears· at ti· 1 f . . ., , ie enc o the sixth year the students take their degree in medicine and s~rgery and then pass the state examination which quahhes them for professional work).

Emolled students in the_ pathology class arc obliged to attend the l~boratory 111 turn and to make some laboratory expenments under the guidance f . · l . . o a spec1a assistant m accordance with the program the director of the Institute may compile. It is to be noted that in Florence tl:e te~ching ~f general experimental pathology also comprises 111struct10n m bacterioloo·y and im n 1-. ,-,. 1 uno ogy 111 a separat~ course, three hours weekly for which the teach~ng, obligatory for students of general pathol­ogy and 1mmunology, !s given six hours weekly plus three hou~·s '.or practical work. In the pathology 00~11-. ·~, which mcludcs demonstrations, lessons are given pnnc1pally on the general etiology of diseases and on pathogenesis (the etiology and pR.thol)'enesis of infect· .

l . . d' I:> JOUS

anc paras1~1c 1sea.-es are expounded in the bacteri-?logy and . nnmunology course), on cellular _pathology, 1nflammat10n, general pathology of the met b 1· ,

l . a o ism,

on ca on e economy and fever, on the general pathology

ROYAL UNIVERSITY: OF FLORENCE ol' the circulatory sy;; tcm, of the respiratory system, of the digestion tubes and relative glands, of the urinary organs and of the skin , of the secretive glands of the sys­tem of rcbtivc life form s, and in a word general ideas on t umors . The course is illustrated by microscopic prep­arations, fi gure;;, and lantern views. Regular discus­sions with the students arc also prescribed, aided by microscopic preparations .

In the two courses t here are about seventy or eighty medical students enro lled. Men holding degrees in medicine and surgery as well as und rgraduates arc welcomed and after a long study carry on experimental research under the guidance of the director of the Institute. Serological or histological researches arc not performed in the Institute for profit, but at the request of any doctor, tumors are examined

gratuitously, as this is the center for the diagno:;is of tumors.

STAFF

The scientifi c staff comprises : the director, an assist­ant, who is generally free to devote his time to teachin g. and three University assistants. Qualified medical stu­dents who frequent the Institute for scientific work also act as assistants. The technical staff comprises a rne~hanic, t, custodian , a woman to look after the animals for experiments, and two cleaners .

EXPENDITURE Lire Salaries for members of staff. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80,000 General expenses for the upkeep of the Institute 50,000

B .1,:c 1:: 1vgo FOil P un 1.1 cAT 10N FEBHU AHY 14, 1927