In 1914, Nurse Callaghan ran a private hospital at 56 Church Street, Fitzroy (The Age, 20 Jan 1914) and at the end of the same month applied for Registration of her private hospital (Fitzroy City Press, 31 Jan 1914).
In May 1914, her hospital received a patient Mrs Sarah Young. Sarah and her husband William Thomas Johnson Young who resided at 70 Greeves Street, Fitzroy. On a Wednesday afternoon at 3.20pm, Ernest Arthur Richardson, a carpenter, advised he smelt smoke and and when he rushed into the house, he found Sarah alongside a one-fire stove, burning from the breast downwards. The story is a bit mixed, one account says he threw a dish of water over her extinguishing the flames and another in the same article says he carried her to a tap and managed to extinguish the flames. They took her to Nurse Callaghan’s private hospital, in Church Street where she was attended to by Dr. P. A. Parer, where she later died, likely of burns and shock. Major E.T. Apps, J P, held an inquiry at the Fitzroy Courthouse on 16 May into the death, but found that it was caused by the burns and accidentally received. (Weekly Times, 23 May 1914)
By 10 June 1914, Nurse Callaghan had moved to being the matron at Belmore Private Hospital, 43 Alfred Crescent, Fitzroy North. She advertised that she had superior accommodation for ladies with emergency cases admitted. She also “offers woman indisposed a good home in return for services. (The Argus, 10 Jun 1914)
In January 1915 she applied for the re-registration of her private hospital at 43 Alfred Crescent, which was assessed by Dr Morton, Health Officer and found that it was in very good order and recommended that the Council grant each application, which was then referred to the Health and Public Works Committee. (Fitzroy City Press, 30 Jan 1915).
While Nurse Callaghan specialised in midwifery she also provided a home for invalids and did outcalls (Table Talk, 18 Feb 1915).
She worked there training other nurses. In April 1915 at the completion of the Nurses, including Granger, Perrin and Duddy, she was presented with a piece of silver as an appreciation of her interest in the period of training by Mr Granger (father to one of the nurses) (The Herald, 27 April 1915).
Callaghan then moved in October 1919 to Carowinda Private Hospital at 449 Rae Street, Fitzroy North. There is no record of the hospital that I have yet located prior to this date, so perhaps she set it up. The records of this hospital cease in June 1922.
By 1936 Nurse Callaghan appears to have moved to 22 Spring St Preston. (The Age, 22 May 1936)
2 thoughts on “Nurse S Callaghan”