Venereal disease.

Hokitika Guardian, 28 July 1922, Page 3

Venereal disease.

BOARD of HEALTH COMMISSION. WELLINGTON, July 26. A Special Commission of the Board ol Health, appointed by the Minister of Health (Mr C'. .1. Parr) to enquire into the question of venereal disease in New Zealand, commenced ils sittings to-day, the Hon A\ . H. Trigg s living in the chair. In opening the proceedings Mr Pst it said that the committee was entrusted with a very important task, lie had two reasons for setting the committee to work. Firstly it was necessary that the Minister of Health and the" Government should have evidence of Hie feeling of various sections of the community with regard to venereal disease, its prevalence, cause and cure. He siiggstcd that the proceedings should he open to the Press when the evidence was being taken, so that the public would he educated as to the true hearings of the disease and the real facts in connexion with it. It might he possible to coniine the sittings to Wellington, hut lie left it entirely to the discretion of the committee. There were two Acts dealing with the matter, hut there were many wlm claimed they did not go far enough. There was no means of getting hold ol a person who disregarded the law. and unless sufferers voluntarily subjected themselves to treatment, it was a dead letter. “1 fear in many cases it it," he said. The committee would enquire if further legislation were necessary. He instanced what was being done in Australia, and then referred 'ln the fact we had clinics attached to the hospitals in which treatment could lie obtained in strictest confidence. .Mr Parr added that n medical ma.'i had asserted that thete were 2:!.');> cases per year. Such an assertion must, in the nature of things, guesswork. Imt tin; Minister i leg;- ht it possible to obtain iron! the I 'cords ai lio-pitals and in other ways a fair id-a of the extent of the disease in New Zealand. He had been told v large nroportion of the disease was brought into the country by sailors, not! this was possibly quite corns t. The investigation of the committee as to the prevalence. cause and appropriate remedies for the mischief of venereal disease would he watched with considerable interest by the Government. and the report would he of great value, noU only to himself and his colleagues, hut to the community at large.