Acute condition? exploring the status of corporate archives in Canadian hospitals

Abstract

In examining the status of corporate (or institutional, administrative or “business”) archives in Canadian hospitals this thesis combines an exhaustive review of the literature with historical and anecdotal evidence and a formal survey of representative institutions. It discusses the types of institutional and administrative records and illustrates the choices that various institutions have made in collecting and preserving them. It pays special attention to the relationship between the archives and the corresponding records management program. Finally, it introduces the survey methods, such as the sample and questionnaire used, and the crucial issue of getting the questionnaire into the right hands. The results of the survey suggest a renewed case for such archives in light of current circumstances – since certain classes of holdings may well now be of greater legal significance or be preserved in vulnerable digital form – and their importance to the identity and social purpose of the hospital.