In 19th century, Tasmania, an island 300 miles to the south of the Australian mainland, was one of Australia’s seven colonies. With many ports in this island colony, Tasmania was no stranger to infectious diseases. Unsurprisingly, typhoid was described as an “insidious foe”, because it was rather different from a natural disaster or other such calamity of scale. When typhoid was endemic in Hobart, mortality stood at around 15 cases per year. The nursing care of typhoid patients was constant; it required regular sponging, compressing, hydration, feeding, and recording the various treatments and stimulants given. Individuals with advanced typhoid could muster enormous reserves of strength, despite their delirium and underlying weakness. It is fair to say that Hobart General Hospital (HGH) had its fair share of administrative concerns during infectious disease challenges in the 1870s and 1880s, because the hospital failed to keep up with community expectations of health care.