The Struggle to Serve: A History of the Moncton Hospital, 1895 to 1953

The first half of the 20th century witnessed the creation of Canada’s modern hospital system. In an era of government cutbacks in health services and comparisons with a more privatized American system, W.G. Godfrey offers an examination of Canada’s hospital experience, showing that it was a slow journey from largely privately funded to increasingly governmentally funded institutions. Godfrey focuses on one hospital and the communities it served but also provides an overview of local, provincial and federal hospital policies, revising the rose-tinted picture of public and private acceptance and generosity. He explores the relationship between the hospital’s urban and rural constituencies and its French- and English-speaking patients, demonstrating that increasing patient numbers and changing funding sources encouraged growth in hospital services from 1895 to 1953. He details how one community’s understanding of the role of the hospital changed over time to match that of hospital advocates, board members and support groups such as the Ladies’ Aid, demonstrating that hospital history is as much a study of politics and community persuasion as it is of internal therapeutic advances.