"UNSATISFACTORY."

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 690, 15 December 1909, Page 8

"UNSATISFACTORY."

A QUESTION.OF MEDICAL;ASSISTANCE. A LETTER AND AKEPOETi . - t Apparently, the official relationshjp between a the St. John Ambulance Association and tho t . Wellington Benevolent Institution requires to e bo more clearly defined, according to what s transpired at the meeting of tho Trustees of s tho Benevolent Institution yesterday, when the following letter; from tho secretary of the St. e John Ambulance (Mr. S: H. Fisher), was 's read:— ' '. " .. ■ •!-. : : , r "Recently one of tho district nurses ,• (Nurso Sexton) was. requested' to call on a ■ ' man (in receipt of charitable aid), who was 1 very ill when she saw him. Realising .that . ti.o patient was almost 'in' extremis, the • nurse rang up-tho secretary of the Benevo- _■ lent Institution, explaining tho case,: and e he promised to send along a medical man. \' ■ rwo days passed, and as no doctor ,apgeared, the nurso telephoned again to Mr. '' Truebridge, who . then intimated' that he ~ did not intend to send a medical man, on ° the grounds that tho patient was not with-' ® out means. Upon investigation, tho nurse-' 5 discovered that the pationt was. in very poor circumstances, with a wife and seven 1 children, and that his wife and oldest boy a wcro endeavouring to earn enough money " ° to provide fooS for the family. The nurse r had no alternative but to call in a doctor ! > on her own responsibility, as the man was in J the last stage of:consumption. : Aβ the. pa- ->■ tient has since died, the widow is not in a I , position to pay any medical fee. My com- /' c ', tnittco is of the opinion that your secree tary should have sent a'doctor when theK ■ case was reported to him,-. as : , th,e matter-: >) was ono of extreme urgency."' ■ ■■■■'■'. ' ■ II ■'•; The Other Side, '. r ' In a lengthy report (of which the following is a. precis), tho Secretary of the Institution „.' (Mr. A.' H. Truebridge) supplied his side of i. the question. The association's nurso rang mm up, oil: November 25, and ; stated'that-tho, ° man was \cry ill, and asked him to send a * doctor. Being well aware of the'nature, of 3 the complaint, he questioned the nurse, with ■ a: view, to ascertaining whether the man was r . worse than usual, and found that ho was not j; confined t-- his bed, nor did: there appear to .. be' anything ..extraordinary under the circum- ' stances within his (the secretary's) Knowledge '■ V It i was arranged that : Miss Kirk v- (the v l board s visitor) • should visit the .man at once, »• andif.he was able to get about, to give him 0 a-letter to Dr. Tell (with ..which sho ■ was provided by the secretary). This course was takon.-as-.it-did not appear,; from Nurso Sexton s, statement, that the man was confined- to bed. ■ Miss Kirk-.reported that , the whole course of tbo trouble was. the patient's own 3 foolishness in taking a- quite unreasonable quantity of medicine, and notiii any wav connected-with' his old-standing chest trouble ■ Ho was ihen-much betteirand objected'to K Dr. tell attending him.- :So far :thore did not appuar_ to be any ■ question of medical urgency fc o doubt he was very, ill' in respect of his lungs, but they-had, done: everything if possible vto persuade, him ~tb avail himself e of .proper dealing with, this, and !- without, avail.- Ho resolutely refused every e kind of advice and argument. : ."■ >■ : .. '■ ■ ■ . - /, ■ '.. ■'•■-.■ •- ■', ■'-. e Whose Responsibility? ' . ,-,'■ h ~" Bu .V cpllt i? ued ,' the secretary, "assuming that,-it .was the, chest trouble, and that the • man was..really much- worse' in that or any f- other resptot, did his having,, or not-having 1 St'r medlca ,?« depend' solely.-• upon the >• institution providing it? Itvwas found that 0 rVITfL lncome . °*' £?. 2s-;*M coming- in, and 1 .that.the,man-had himself received la on the * previous Saturday as his own earnings.- There * lif™ Ii f vin ?, with ttefamily who was e 1S« ,TOrk -. a a?.family was also receivinfe six e rations from'the institution. It did not a fS Oro, nPPea V , th , at thG -.««*««»of The n l^ 7 Z as s ?.-; h elp.less as would, have pree vented the calling in of a. doctor. Further I , nCt "rf.tte-mea having,earned £3 loll' '' The Nurse's System. .: ■- ? i !? w i«> Mr. KirkT-itwas j- decided that the case was: not of such urgency ?L J "t A 1 cb ??- explaining _ Hie matter to: Nurse Sexton, sho said: 'T\'hen .£3 in their pocket they do not: re- ■ quire tho benevolent institution .to send a doci- ■ °«ii Is . m y system.::' :-. .;■',:.■■.•■ , •, .. e m' r°' a .PPlJ?ati6n:v.f6ri-a;-,doctor .'was. made bv eluded ;the- secretary.', "Furthermore, I con' a sidorod it Necessary to enquire into all cases where- a ■ request,, or perhaps, 'il might almostp ance by Nurse ..Sexton." :..,;',.,,-.:.:. r Miss Kirk's statement was'takW in comnuttec. , - ' ' - - , .. ■ a ..'''■ An Understanding Necessary. . : » ..■°P'.«>s M »ipf)' ;; 'the fe-.-Wi A.'Evans said ■ that the position in which the Benevolent In- ' stitution found-itself with regard to its re- !• lahons with the St. John Ambulance AssociaB tion was similar to that which had formerly '- oxieted in ■ the trustees' dealings with tho: Salvation. Army. It was an' \ unsatisfactory posi* 8 lion, and..was. only.-placed ou a proper basis' • by clearly denning their relationship with 6 the' Army. .This was.accomplished:by amicable 0 nejohnttons, aud, ns a result, it had been'laid J down that in all cases there should be ft clear 0 understanding as to- the : responsibility.: If u the Army referred a case to tho board, then „ the board took it. over; from, tho Army, and accepted entire responsibility, and.'vice-versa. '• Each side was to manage its own affairs. There was to be no •co-operation., .- A similar under- . standing was required to' be' arrived with > tho ot. John Ambulance Association. 9 Mr. D. Kobertson; said that when he-first read the letter from the association, lie had 1 felt sorry that a doctor had riot been 6ent. 9 Since/, he had learnt the full facts of the case, ■ ho qnite agreed .with the ■ course of action, 3 taken-by the secretary. ~.";•' • .. ..■' ' s . Tho ajoretary , ;; report, was:,-adopted; and it •' was resolved to arrange for a conference with ? tho Ambulance Association, with a view to an ' arrangement : of responsibiHty;.in'future cases.