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Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 176, 21 April 1921, Page 5

The establishment of private or paying wards in public hospitals was one of the subjects wnicli came up for review dur-, in-’ the sitting of the Hospitals Commission in Auckland. Mr. T. Ellis, representing the Whangarei Hospital Board, stated that his board was in favour of providing private wards at a small extra charge, up to about per week. He thought that if these were established inanv well-to-do people would prefer paying 'a little extra for them instead of going into the general wards. J his was particularly the case with regard to people suffering from nervous complaints, who desired the privacy of a room ™ themselves. Thero was no doubt but that many people would go into the public hospital, provided there were private wards, who would otherwise enter a private hospital. Dr. C. E. Maguire, superintendent of the Auckland Hospital, eal< t he was much in favour of the scheme of providing private wards at public hospitals. He believed it would make for efficiency. It would give the patients the advantage of special departments not existing in private hospitals. Tho objection of many people to ordinary watd* was the lack of privacy. As to a belief growing that better treatment would be given in 'private wards, he said that thero could be only one standard of treatment in any hospital, and that was the best. It was only a matter of educating the public on this subject. It would not involve a separate nursing staff. This system was bound to come. It was tho modem trend of hospital development-