Can't be a calendar... a 6 day week?

I agree the baseboards are meant to keep carts and gurneys away from the wall to keep from damaging the plaster. I painted a hospital once and noticed that the architects took protection of the wall structure quite seriously, with metal corners and the like.

See the pipes along the top of the roof- practical won over integration. probably after they ran out of budget for infrastructure refits.

It is a tin ceiling... what you are seeing falling off is the thick paint.