Description

The Bice Building was the first of a planned six new buildings fronting North Terrace occupying what had originally been the gardens of the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Work commenced in early January 1924 with a foundation stone being laid in August of that year, but the building was not opened until 1927. It was named after the recently deceased former Chief Secretary, Sir John Bice, who had done much to improve the Hospital as part of his Ministerial responsibilities. Changes were made to the building in 1958 when additional rooms were added on the eastern side of the building at ground and first-floor level, and the front portico had an additional room added above with appropriate detailing to create a library internally. The building was originally known as the Administration Building and contained offices, meeting rooms and other administrative services on the ground floor. The first and second floors provided accommodation for the resident medical officers and this included a library, billiard room, dining room and bedrooms. The third floor above was occupied by a large ward which was surrounded on three sides by balconies to encourage fresh air and foster natural ventilation. With a north-south orientation, there was a maximum exposure to natural light on the east and west sides, and this encouraged cross ventilation, an important part of hospital design at this time.The Bice Building was the first of a planned six new buildings fronting North Terrace occupying what had originally been the gardens of the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Work commenced in early January 1924 with a foundation stone being laid in August of that year, but the building was not opened until 1927. It was named after the recently deceased former Chief Secretary, Sir John Bice, who had done much to improve the Hospital as part of his Ministerial responsibilities. Changes were made to the building in 1958 when additional rooms were added on the eastern side of the building at ground