HOSPITAL BOARD REBUKES HEALTH MINISTER

Chronicle (Levin), 21 May 1946, Page 3

HOSPITAL BOARD REBUKES HEALTH MINISTER

rtTLL EFFORTS MADE TO COMBAT TUJBEKOULOSiS "Mr. Nordmeyer's remarks were uxicalled for. He should be told to make sure of his faets before making public statements. . JBecausc a man is a Minister of the Crown he secms to thiuk hc can waxidcr round tfte eountryside makixig whatever rexnarks he lilces, without lirst pro vidixig a foundation for tlrein. I tliink we should strongly proo test on this mattcr. ' ' •These remarks were macle ' by' :Mr. J. Boyce at a meeting of the Palmerston ' Nortk Hospital Board yesterday- iu repiy to.a recently reported statehient* by the Miaister of Health (Hoxi. A. 11. Hordmeyer) suggesting that hospital boards were failiug to fullil tlieir obligatioiis in the provisioti of suitable hospital and saxiatoriuin faeilities for tuberculosis suii'crers, especially Maoris. The board had before it the anuuai report of its iiliysician (Dr. J. D. Wiilis) ou the activities of the tubereulosis clinic. After it had beexi eoxisidered. the cliairmaxi (Mr. J. A. Xasli) said he thought the facts coutained in the report provided the inost substantial aiiswer to the Minister. "I tliink the best thiug we can do is to send a copy of this report to the Minister," he said. "The contents speak for thcmselvesj and should sliow liiin just what this board has done to deal with tuberculosis in our district. if tliere has beeu anv delay in ehoosing a site for the proposcd new sanatoriuni, it is only beeause of the latitude grunted to Wanganui by the Western Districts Joint Sauatorium C'ommittee in the mattcr of suggesting sites. We hope to have the question fixially settlcd at our next meeting of the conimittce. " In seconding the motion, Mr. Boyce made the remarks quotcd above. •Mr. A. J. Gimblett: If vou want my opinion, it wus just electioneering 011 the Minister 's part. Mr. J. Hodgens, M.P., said that when |ie read the Alinister's comments, lie adopted the atlitudc that tlie "cap did not lit", and took 110 furtlior uotice. lie wus well satislied that the board played second liddle to no oue in New Zealand in w-hat it had done for tuberculosis paticnts. He thought that tlie cliairmau's proposal would satisfy eacli niember of tlie board. Tlie position rcallv went back to 1927, said Mr. A. E. Mansford, who mentioiied that at that timo tlie board had opened clinics for tuberculosi.s pulients. The board 's movc in the malter had growu from that begiuning lo district xiurses. The maiiagiiig-secrclary (Mr. A, J. Pliillipps) said the Palmerston North board had suggested the joint districts' coiiimittees as far back as 1927, but had i'aitod to gct tlie necessary snppOrt. lliexi. Tlie report by J)r. Willis stated: — "During tlie year ending Deeember 31, 19-15, the tuberculosis clinic has bcen running on the samc general lines as organised by me last year. The Hos: pital Almoncr, Sisfdr Spensley, ahd her exeellent team of district nurscs, has done a great deal of cssenlial and valuable ground work in maintaining contact with the district cases, particulariy Maoris, and those not attending Ihe chest clinic. "An outpalient chest clinic was held eacli Mouday afternoou and at Ihis time I saw many of tlie niild and ambutuberculosis cases for supervision of treatnient and in order to watch tlieir progrcss. During Ihe year, 3,Si; cases were seon at this clinic, tlie majority of wliicli were European. ll has beeu proved as diilicult to persuade Maori cases to keep tlieir appointmcnts at this clinic, as it has beeu to get hoiho of tliem with early and curablc disease, to conie inlo hospital i'or adequale Irealment. To get ovcr this difticulty iii our follow-up system, as well as for niore tliorough casc linding, 1 started district visiting in March, 19-15, in company with Hister Hpensley. The districts visited were Feilding, Shannoii, Foxton and Levin. Otaki cases wero seen by Dr. Wilson at the sanatoriuni. Duriirg tlie ten montli period from March to December, 1915, twenty-one sucli visits were made, at which 180 cases were seen. Until we had covered eacli district, visits were made monthly, but arc now being continued two-month-j lv to each district. Where new cases are fouud, all contacts — usually the immediato family — are advised to have chest X-rays, and during the year, 598 such contacts were X-rayed. Out of a total of 58 new cases notiticd during the year, 30 werti found from contact X-rav. Of these tlie majority (22j were Maoris. This Alaori predouiiuence of family contact cases may be due not only to tlieir lessened natural resisteuce to the tubercle bacillus, but also 1 tliink, partly to tlieir more gregarious habits, particularly in regard to the sick and dying. "Difticulty was often experienced by di-striet nurses in getting Maori cases axid contacts to report to hospital for X'-ray. In oue or two instaiices where ciNps of open tuberculosis refused treaOuent, they were committed to hospital by" the Mcdical Ofticer of Health. In otlxer iustiinces after tlieir repeated failure to altend jiospital, aud provided that there were no evidences that they were a dangcr to their fellows, oue leiided to adopt a policy of "laissez l'aire", as rcgards active treatment. Di the inatter of futurc policy, I think the maia emphasis should be placed upon improved housing and living conditions and general education of the Maoris in its preventive hspect, rather than on any great attempt to actively treat more cases. "New Plyxuouth Hospital lias recently purchased mobile X-ray equipment I undorstand for use among the Maoris, or at least, partly for this purpose. Althougli in theory a piece of equipment of this nature would bc of value in case linding and supervision for cases in this hospital district, I doubt in practice wlicther it would be worth its cost for this board to purchase oue itself, but 1 tliink that if the xnachine eould be made available to all boards in the Western Hospital District area for supervision and case linding, particularly among the

Maoris, it would be a valuablc addition to our.elTorts iu the reduction of tuberculosis. So often it is not a laek oi hospital or sanatorium beds, so mucli' as an unwillingiiess to admit that they have tuberculosis, to realise its siguificance, and to conic into hospital, which defeats our elforts at lessening the spread of the disease. With few exceptions Europeans have proved inlinitely more cooperative.