Kingston General Hospital School of Nursing Alumnae Collection
Category
Patient Care Artifacts
Hygiene
Classification
Patient Care
Hygiene
Sanitation
Bedpan
Home Health Care
Accession Number
995002107 a-b
Description
Slipper-shaped, hollow enamel bedpan (a), rounded at front and tapering at the back with a closed, squared end; open cylindrical spout at front; round opening on top that is covered with (b) a lid, which is round with a knob on top; lip on inside of lid.
Slipper-shaped, hollow enamel bedpan (a), rounded at front and tapering at the back with a closed, squared end; open cylindrical spout at front; round opening on top that is covered with (b) a lid, which is round with a knob on top; lip on inside of lid.
Number Of Parts
2
Part Names
a - bedpan - Size: Length 47.5 cm x Width 30.5 cm x Depth 10.6 cm
b - lid - Size: Depth 4.8 cm x Diam. 20.8 cm
Provenance
Owned by Noreen Leishman, graduate of the Kingston General Hospital School of Nursing, class of 1950, belonged to "Pokey," a relative; apparently also a relative of Marg Polk.
Enamel chipped at edges and metal shows some inactive corrosion.
Copy Type
Original
Reference Types
Book
Website
Article
Reference Comments
American Association for the History of Nursing, https://www.aahn.org/bedpans#:~:text=Porcelain%2C%20china%2C%20and%20even%20pottery,enamel%20and%20then%20stainless%20steel.&text=Today%20these%20antique%20bedpans%20are,be%20found%20in%20antique%20stores.
Cassandra Good, “The Strange Saga of George Washington’s Bedpan,” August 20th, 2015. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/strange-saga-george-washingtons-bedpan-180956347/
"Hospital & Physicians Equipment and Supplies," by J.F. Hartz Co., 1960, p. 269
Research Facts
Before the late nineteenth century, bedpans and similar objects were made of metals such as pewter, brass, and sometimes even glass. By the late nineteenth century, porcelain, china, and pottery were used. As the 20th century dawned, bedpans, urinals, basins, etc. were made of enamel and later stainless steel. In the 1960s, there was a shift towards plastics and other disposables.
The bedpan was designed for people who could not or should not rise from their beds to relieve themselves of human waste. A bedpan could be lightly heated and placed under the covers of the beds of the elderly, people who were ill, and women recovering from childbirth so that they would not have to get out of bed. They were routinely emptied by caregivers, nurses, etc.
This bedpan style is a "slipper" type, later referred to as a fracture bedpan and can be slipped under the patient. The spout is to facilitate washing it out. Fracture bedpans are smaller than standard size bedpans, and have one flat end. This bedpan style is designed specifically for patients who are bedridden and have limited movement to use a standard style bedpan.