A TRYING BUSINESS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 103, 24 January 1918, Page 6

A TRYING BUSINESS

MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS

STATEMENT BY SURGEON-GENERAL The following statement regarding the work of medical boards uy Sur-geon-General i'lenUerson was made available by the Minister of Defence yesterday :— Aiedical boards have to deal with all sons and conditions of recruits, soma of whom, impatient of control under tno stress and dislike of the examination they have to submit to, are liable to misunderstand and resent necessary questions put to elucidate their physical condition. On the other hand, medical officers of recruiting boards have a thankless task, combined with most severe and monotonous work. It is no pleasure to them to have to pass a man iit, when such an action means a separation, perhaps forever, Horn near and dear ones, with, in addition, possibly greater pecuniary sacrifices; or on the oiner hand to liavo to find unlit young and gimerous youths, eager for service, who caunoc understand that a disability which causes little inconvenience in civil life absolutely precludes them from taking their part in the great cause.

Although such action is in no way to be justified, it is quite conceivable that medical officers in the middle ot a hard day's work) with many more men waiting to be examined, may occasionally retort in kind to a recruit who delays his ex&Hiination and wades the questions put to him. Cases may have occurred in which therjj Aave been grounds for complaints, but it is generally recognised that recruits who aro about to give their services for their

country ( are entitled to every courtesy, and that everything that, can possibly be done to smooth their progress to becoming soldiers of the Empire should be done. This is my own feeling, and ie, 1 feel sur,p, the feeling of the members of the medical boards, who are also making sacrifices of time, comfort, money, and health, in trying to do their duty by their country.

The public may rest assured that every consideration will be fully extended to all recruits, and I would like to emphasise the fact that both the members of the boards and myself will welcome bona-fide charges preferred by any man subsequent to this day who considers himself aggrieved, and will give him the fullest satisfaction. In this connection men with grievances should be particular in specifying dates, place, subject, etc., and full circumstances, and address them to the Officer Commanding or to the AdjutantDirector MeSical Services of the district concerned. • '

There still seems to exist a great deal of misapprehension as to the varying decisions as to fitness given by medical boards. It is pointed out that medical science is not an exact one, and different medical men may quite legitimately hold different opinions as to tho ultimate effects of certain suspected disabilities. In this connection it may be mentioned that at a leading hospital in England attended by the most eminent physicians, tho results of post-mortem examinations during; a period of a year disclosed something like 10 per cent, of errors in the diagnosis made in the lifetime of the patients.

To secure greater uniformity and as far as possible ensure that only suitable men are passed in the future, medical officers who are now returned from active service, and are familiar with conditions at the front, aro boin.c added to the lioa'rds, and no man of the Second Division wlio has been classed by a medical board as C 2 wijl again be brought up for medical examination.