What is the name of an entity - a room or a couple rooms, or a small detached building serving the role of a tiny hospital within a larger entity (military base, prison, or even a ship.) Essentially, a place where the sick of the enclosed entity are treated, either for milder cases where actual hospital is not necessary, or when access to a real hospital is unavailable.
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That sounds like a sick bay to me, especially for ships. Another word that might be more generic, but I'm not sure about being one or two rooms, is a ward.– Damkerng T.Jan 3, 2014 at 14:25
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1I thought sick bay was reserved to the military & ships? In a boarding school it is an infirmary. There are first aid rooms (or units) in workplaces. The word might well vary according to the place...– NoneJan 3, 2014 at 14:38
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@Laure: It is quite possible English has different words for different forms of that kind of entity - in my language one word covers mostly all of them.– SF.Jan 3, 2014 at 14:52
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And it might be different in UK, USA, Australia, ...– NoneJan 3, 2014 at 14:56
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In places like schools and large businesses in the US you might just call it "The Nurse's Office"– JimJan 3, 2014 at 15:03
2 Answers
Aboard a ship, it is called a sickbay. Considering the definitions of it here http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sickbay?q=sickbay and here http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/sickbay, this might also be suitable to use when talking about such a room in general, even when it is on land.
According to this link http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/infirmary, the word infirmary can used be used in general but, it does not include ships.
I'd vote for "infirmary". Also possible are "clinic" or, as Jim says, "nurse's office".