Arthur H. Aufses, Jr. MD Archives Blog

November 18th is World Toilet Day, a phrase that seems strange – and funny! – to the ears.  So, first some fun. Below are images of the fancy new bathroom, including a toilet, that Mount Sinai Hospital offered to the well-to-do paying patients in the new Private Pavilion that opened in 1921.  It does not look like much today, but it had all the pieces and could be kept ‘sanitary,’ which was an important goal.

Which leads to the unfunny part about World Toilet Day.  It exists for a reason. As the website for World Toilet Day notes: “Of the world’s seven billion people, 2.4 billion people do not have improved sanitation. 1 billion people still defecate in the open. Poor sanitation increases the risk of disease and malnutrition, especially for women and children.” (http://www.worldtoiletday.info/about)

Think about it, and go to the website to learn more.

Gug Pav bathroom 1922 lo res                                                                 Gug Pav bathroom toilet 1922 lo res

 

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