Curatorial Records: Numbered Correspondence 239
October 18, 1894
Colonel Charles H. Alden,
Assistant Surgeon General, U. S. Army.
Surgeon General's Office,
Washington, D. C.
Dear Colonel Alden:
Referring to your favor of October 18th, I will try to have everything in readiness for the Board on Wednesday morning.
As regards the memorandum of what I think will be the proper work, in my line, for the class at the Hospital Corps School, let me say that it will be necessarily very brief. I do not see what more I can do than try to impart to them some idea of the general principles of disinfection. I might also go into the subject of sterilization by heat, giving them practical demonstrations, that would certainly devote the greater part of my time to the matter of disinfection of the hands. It seems to me that this latter would be a most important thing for those who are expected to assist in antiseptic surgical work. They would then appreciate why it was necessary to have their hands thoroughly disinfected. This would, of course, necessitate the taking of cultures from the hands of the members of the class before and after disinfection, so that that could, by ocular demonstration, see very clearly what was obtained by careful washing and disinfection of the hands. I would also expect to tell them something about the disinfection of the steels.
I think I could cover this ground in four (4) lessons, in six (6) at the outside - each lesson to be of one hour's duration. Any time would suit me, provided the hour did not go after 3 p.m.
Very respectfully,
Walter Reed
Major and Surgeon, U. S. Army.
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