The Globe. TUESDAY, MAY 6, 1879.

Globe, Volume XX, Issue 1625, 6 May 1879, Page 2

The Globe. TUESDAY, MAY 6, 1879.

THE "Star" has of late, with its usual I wrong —headedness, boon throwing out insinuations that things are not as they should bo at tho Christchurch Hospital. It has seized on tho facts of tho resignation of Dr. Moritz Mark and tho enquiry into the conduct of tho matron to hint that tho institution is not well managed under tho new regime. " It is clear," says tho " Star" —" that things are working neither smoothly nor pleasantly under tho now regime " —Our contemporary is entirely mistaken. Things aro working both smoothly and pleasantly and tho Hospital was never in a more thorough state of efficiency than it is at the prosont moment. The Governor, when visiting it yostorday declared himself highly ploasod with tho manner in which it is conducted; moreover, tho number of bods at present occupied has novor been exceeded, there being now none to spare whatever. During tho whole of last yoar there wore only 500 cases takon in, whilo in tho first four months of tho presont yoar there have already boon 300 eases admitted. This will show that at all events tho institution is not in that languishing and disorganised state in which it pleases tho " Star" to insinuate that it is. To take tho cases on which the " Star " builds its allegations. It is quite true that an enquiry has been hold into tho efficiency of tho matron. Wo shall dwell lightly on this matter, becauso tho consideration of the report on the subject has been postponed by tho Hospital Board, so that tho public havo no means of passing judgment on the morits of tho caso. It is an absurdity, however, to say that because tho Board aro determined to see well to tho servicoablonoss of its servants that therefore matters are not as they should bo. We hold that on tho contrary the anxiety of the Board to keep up tho efficiency of its staff is tho greatest guarantee the public can have that the Board duly recognizes its responsibilities. Let us move on to our contemporary's second casus belli, namoly, tho resignation of Dr. Moritz Mark. And here wo may state that any remarks we may have to pass are made in no spirit of hostility whatovor to tho gentleman who has just retired from tho hospital staff, but tho whole affair having become public property, it is evident that tho public should bo put into possession of tho real facts of the caso. Considerable doubt seems to hang over tho question as to what is the real position of tho House Surgeon at tho hospital. We havo gone carefully into tho matter, and have come to tho conclusion that his position is much as follows: —Ho is responsible to the Government and tho Hospital Board for every caso that comes into the hospital. He is subject, however, to a goneral supervi son by the staff. Take for example the case of a man brought into tho establishment suffering from mortal disease, or from a very severe accident. Ho may die in a few hours, a day, or two days; possibly before tho visiting physician or surgeon has once seen the patient. Tho Houso Surgeon is clearly responsible for the treatment of that individual. In any caso ho must initiate the treatment of any person brought into the hospital. Tho visiting doctor comes round and, if nothing wrong is found to bo going on, he endorses tho action of tho Houso Surgeon. Clearly if in every case, or even very frequently, ho had to change tho treatment, tho Houso Surgeon would not bo competent to retain 1110 puot. If a constant pliangfo o£ treatment were to follow each visit of the visiting doctor, tho confusion created would be interminable, and the Houso Surgeon would evidontly be not tho man suited to the post. So, takon broadly, we may look upon it as proved, that the visiting doctor's role is in most cases to endorso the action of tho houso surgeon. Dr. Chilton is a doctor holding high qualifications, and his degrees, at all events, entitle his opinions to much consideration. He holds the qualification of licentiate of the College of Surgeons, the same of the College of Physicians, and is a licentiate of midwifery, so that it cannot bo argued that his goneral views on the treatment of any case aro not worthy of respect. The Colonial Secretary would never have placed Dr. Chilton in the responsible position which he holds unless ho had been satisfied that the patients would receive full justice at his hands. In fact it is absurd to imagine that a duly qualified medical man would accept tho position of a House Surgeon, if ho were to hold no higher position than that of a spocios of head nurse or dispenser. Tho prosont stalf wo bolieve we are correct in saying, fully recognize the value of Dr. Chilton's services and so indeed did the old staff until thoy so gracefully loft tho Hospital. It would indeed ho a had day for tho public when they were not able to give a goneral trust to tho gontloman into whose hands tho first treatment of all cases must necessarily fall. Evidently, if the House Surgeon's treatmont is not generally endorsed by the visiting doctors, ho is not fitted for his post, and inextricable confusion in tho genoral management of tho instiuttion must insuo. Tho caso of a bank inspector altering tho system of accounts ovory time ho visits a local bank is somewhat analagous to tho caso of a visiting physician, or surgeon altering tho treatment initiated every timo ho puts foot within the wards. The staff havo tho powor of gonoral supervision, but if thoy are not, as a rule, satisfied the houso surgeon must of necessity resign. Such being tho facts of the caso, what does Dr. Moritz Mark do directly he enters the hospital. In the first place he is a foreigner, and has the haziest ideas on the subject of tho duties attached to the post of Houso Surgeon. Not only does ho wildly altor the treatment of the cases ovor which he has supervision, but ho endeavors to introduce systems into tho hospital, for tho due carrying out of which thoro exist no facilities whatovor. Homeopathy and hydropathy aro all very well in their way, and tho systems havo many believers, but it is utterly absurd to expect that homrepathic and hydropathic treatment can bo introduced into an institution like tho hospital, Tho goneral appliances thoro havo never boon planned with a view to these methods being adopted, and tho staff of nurses is not largo enough. But Dr. Mark, on entering the hospital,

endeavored, in vulgar parlance, to " rush the institution. Nothing was right that was done in any oilier method than in that particular 0110 which ho advocated. Had his views been carried out an enormous increase in the number of nurses would have boon requisite, and tho exponsos of the institution would soon have l)oon found to run up in an alarming manner. Lot a doctor with peculiar hobbies start an establishment of his own, and there look after such of suffering mankind as believe in his method of treatment, but it is altogether out of tho bounds of reason that ho should bo allowed to upset all existing arrangements in an institution which is working well and economically. Tho absurdity of Dr. Mark's position is heightened by tho fact that ho was only a visiting physician by ' courtesy. On tho appointment of tho 1 now staff tho post of ophthalmic surgeon was apportioned to him, and it was merely tho result of a special application by him to tho staff that he was allowed to visit in a goneral way. And yet the first thing ho does is to " rush" tho Hospital. Ho may bo a very clever man for anything wo know to tho contrary, but when a private practitioner becomes a public officor, ho must, if ho holds peculiar ideas of his own, learn tho meaning of tho word " compromise." Dr. Chilton, as stated in his letter to tho Board, always troatod Dr. Mark with the greatest courtesy and consideration, and wo feel sure that tho former would bo tho first to welcome an enquiry if Dr Mark wished for one. However good a doctor Dr. Mark may happen to be, we cannot look upon his resignation as a misfortune. His goneral views may be harmonious in themselves, but they are evidently not in tune with the views adopted by the remainder of tho Staff, or with the tone of the institution in the management of which he had undertaken a part.