RIE Oral Histories!

This week Access Officer Louise discusses the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Oral History Project…

At the start of May I began an eight month project to collect oral histories from people familiar with the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh building at Lauriston Place. The project has been funded by the Edinburgh Futures Institute which will be based in the old hospital building from 2021. You can learn more about the EFI here:

https://efi.ed.ac.uk/

The RIE Oral History project aims to capture memories from people who used the building when it was a hospital. The nature of people’s encounters with the building varied so greatly and hopefully this will be reflected in the project through a diverse range of participants. Potential interviewees could include members of staff (medical, support services, administration, etc.), former patients, volunteers and other healthcare professionals associated with the hospital.

Personal experiences provide evidence and a personal view that we cannot gain from paper records alone. These interviews will help future researchers understand the relationship people had, and still have, with the building.

LHB1/68/16 - David Bryce Plans for New Infirmary - Overlap on drawing on 81 of 21 June 1875 showing section of clock tower with chimneys.

Over the past couple of months I have been working hard to ensure that all my paperwork is in order, and that I have completed any relevant training. I spent some time listening to recordings that were taken as part of the pilot for this project which allowed me to think of potential questions for interviewees. I also attended an ‘Introduction to Oral History’ training day at the Scottish Oral History Centre, University of Strathclyde, which covered everything from project planning to consent and copyright. It also gave me a chance to practice interviewing and being interviewed. This exercise highlighted the importance of selecting your questions carefully so as to avoid leading and closed questions!

Aerial view of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh site at Lauriston Place

The next stage is the interviews themselves, and my diary for the next couple of months is already filling up with scheduled interviews and I hope to increase that number over the coming weeks – so I need you to spread the word!

The interviews will be relaxed and can be conducted individually or in groups. If you are interested in taking part, or know somebody who might be, please contact lhsa@ed.ac.uk or 0131 650 3392 for further information.