TRAVEL PASSES

Marlborough Express, Volume LXXVII, Issue 21, 27 January 1943, Page 6

TRAVEL PASSES

ISSUE TO RETURNED SOLDIERS NO WARRANTS FGR ROAD TRAVEL. GOVERNMENT'S ATTTTUDE OUTLINED. THe Government's attitude towards the payment of fares on service cars fcr soldiers going on leave when under treatment at a hospital has been cutlined by the Minister for Defence in two letters reeeived by the Nelson Provlncial Patriotic Councll. The subject arcse when the Nelson council j recently made representations to the Minister pointing out the inequity of issuing travelling concessions on the railw#ys to returned servicemen, when, in a district such as Nelson, where railway communication was practically negligible, such a concession was of little use. If a man wished to visit friends or relatives he was compelled to travel by service car or steamer at his own expense. The Nelson council accordingly urged that provision be made for such cases by the granting of travelilng warrants which would be available for service cars or steamers. The Minister sent the following reply to the Nelson Patriotic Council: "In regard to travelling facilities it appears tha't your contention is correct in that under the regulations the War Pensions Department is not permitted to issue free travelling warrants other than for travel by rail. This, of course, only refers to war pensions cases as no such restriction exists in respect of serving soldiers. The matter of free travel by service car is under consideration and I will advise you further in the matter as soon as a decision has been arrived at. "I am advised that the statement that a returned soldier patient receives only 10s a week while he is in Hanmer is correct, but I would point out that the balance of the pension,

£3 4s 6d a week. is held to liis credit until he is discharged from hospital. I understand, however, that in case of necessity he may draw against this balance on application to the War Pensions Department." CASES TO BE DEALT WITH ON MERITS. The following further letter from the Minister giving the result of "a review of the position by the Social Security Department in conjunction with the medical officer in cliarge of treatment was reeeived at last night's | meeting of the exeeutive committee of the Patriotic Council: — "Further to my letter in which I stated that the question of free travel by service car in the cases cf soldierpensioner patients was under consideration, I am now in a position to advise you that the question has been the subject of careful review by the Social Security Department in conjunction with the medical officer in charge of treatment. "The War Pensions Branch deals

with pensioners in the following categories: — (1) Pensioners travelling for the purpose of treatment. In these cases free warrants are issued for rail, road or steamer. (2) Pensioners under treatment^ as inpatients who can be allowed leave if inedicaly fit. Such pensioners may be in-patients of— (a) a general hospital out of their own home area. Experience shows that once a patient is fit to travel the general hospital is only too anxious to return him to his own home or home area hospital. The question of leave passes for lengthy journeys does not .arise. (b) Convalescent hospitals such as Rotorua and Hanmer: It is to be specially emphasised that the latter hospital, like the former, is primarily for orthopaedic cases requiring physiotherapy. Any 'neurosis' cases sent to Hanmer are now sent for a maximum period of six weeks and, therefore, the matter of leave does not arise. If an orthopaedic case is over three months in Rotorua and Hanmer and is fit to have leave to travel long distances, it is obvious that he is fit to receive the same treatment at a centre nearer home. If the facilities of leave are widely granted at Rotorua and Hanmer, these two institutions will become 'popular rest homes' to the exclusion of patients really requiring the benefits these places can give. "A patient of any institution in one island who requires and is fit to visit relatives in another island should obviously be under treatment nearer home in his own island. From a medical point of view long travel by service car by any patient requiring institutional treatment is detrimental. "It is the considered opinion of the Medical- Officer that the few cases that may arise (for example, serious illness or the death of a relative) cculd be dealt with on their merits, and it is thought that too much liberty should be restricted so that a hospital should be treated as a hospital and not be viewed as a boardinghouse. The issue of free travelling warrants for travel by rail only is considered to be quite sufficient provision to enable those whose homes are within reasonable distance of the hospital of which they are inmates to visit their homes on such occasions as leave is granted." NELSON CASE QUOTED. In making representations to the Minister the Nelson council cited the instance of a returned soldier, badly wounded in this war, who was undergoing treatment at Hanmer, receiving 10s a week as pay. During a break in his treatment he was permitted to visit his mother in Nelson and reeeived a travelling concession by railway only. His companions living in Timaru and other southern towns on the railway, who returned to their homes at the same time, reeeived a similar concession which took them home without any transport cost to themselves. The Nelson man, however, could travel only to Hundalee on his pass and from that station to Nelson had to find his own fare on the service cars. The exeeutive of the. Nelson Pat-

riotic Council again expressed dissatisfaction with the position and resolved to take the matter up with the Returned Services Association, as well as forwarding the additional correspondence on the subject to the National Patriotic Fund Board to which the position had previously been referreci.