During recent years hospital use has undergone many changes. Improved facilities, general population growth and increased longevity have caused a marked increase in hospital utilization. Further changes have been brought about by expanded government support of public ward beds, the increasing number of government sponsored bodies in the health field and the growth of insurance schemes. As the Economics Committee of the Medical Staff of the Winnipeg General Hospital believed that these trends might be affecting the character of the public ward population, they requested that the School of Social Work, University of Manitoba, carry out a socio-economic analysis of public ward patients. The School agreed to undertake a pilot project consisting of a study of patients discharged from the public wards of the hospital during the period of one month. The purpose of the writer's study, which forms a part of the larger project, haas been to analyse the relationship between the patient's financial situation and his stated intent with regard to payment of the hospital bill...