Medical Records

I get lots of requests from people seeking patient records, but I'm afraid there is not much available from the Cresson san. The patient medical records were sent to the State Archives in Harrisburg, but were destroyed in a flood during Hurricane Agnes in the 1980's.

But there are several things you can try. About 9000 patient index cards covering the period of roughly 1921 to 1931 were found in the attic at the san and were sent to the Cambria County Historical Society for safe keeping. Give them a call and they may be able to check the index cards for info about your relatives. Their website is at the following link:
http://www.cambriacountyhistorical.com/gallery.htm

There is one other option to explore. Index cards on TB patients were often kept by the Pa Dept of Health. If you know what county the patient was living in when they were diagnosed with TB, then you can call the Health Dept office at that county seat and see if they have such a record. I lived in Towanda, the county seat of Bradford County, and obtained my index card from them. You can see my index card below. Click on the following link to see a listing of County Health Department phone numbers by county: http://webserver.health.state.pa.us/health/comm/comm.asp?COUNTY=all

I hope this proves helpful in your search for information.
Chuck Felton

The date of 3-24-55 on the above card was when I entered the Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, Pa. for further tests to officially confirm the initial diagnosis of TB based on my chest x-ray. The 4-14-55 date is when I entered the Cresson sanatorium and 8-19-56 was my release date. I believe the WDC in front of my release date stands for "With Doctor's Consent". They even have the correct date of when I moved to California, 8-13-62.