OTAKI COTTAGE HOSPITAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 30503, 26 June 1926, Page 3

OTAKI COTTAGE HOSPITAL.

RESOLUTION BY CHAMBER 01 COMMERCE.

At the annual meeting of the local Chamber of Commerce on Thursday night, Mr Hornblow moved the following motion: “That this Chamber emphatically protests against any attempt to make the Otaki cottage hospital a charge on the Palmerston North Hospital district and endorses the Department’s policy to have one base hospital and the appointment of trained nurses for outlying districts. That a, copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Minister for Health, Palmerston Hospital Bard and contributing authorities to the hospital in the Board’s district.”

The motion was seconded by Mr Barron.

In speaking to the motion, Mr. Hornblow said many years ago when the Palmerston Hospital district was constituted, the Horowhcnua County refused to be included in the area. Patients from the northern area were, however, treated in the Palmerston hospital. A few years ago a deputation from the northern end of the Horowhenua County asked to be merged into the Palmerston district, and subsequently the whole county petitioned to be disjunctioned from Wellington and merged into the Palmerston district. The petition was granted, conditional on the county contributing the the sum of £SOOO to provide increased accommodation for the county’s patients at the Palmerston hospital and that the Otaki cottage hospital be excluded. These conditions were agreed to and the Health Department took over the Otaki cottage hospital and administered it in connection with the consumptive sanatorium. The Palmerston Board made itself responsible to the Department for the payment of patients fees, but was in no way responsible for its administration. It was found, however, that patients were being sent into the cottage hospital who”could be better treated at Palmerston and that needless expense was being incurred at’ Otaki. The Board offered to make provision at Otaki for four emergency beds and the services of a nurse but this offer had been turned down and the Board, in order to bring the matter of finality, refused to be responsible for any patients sent to the Otaki hospital. This, decision, said Mr. Hornblow, aroused an uproar at Otaki and the Minister of Health was asked to have the institution retained and brought up-to-date. The Board had been villified and misrepresented by the southern people, yet the Board bad treated that end of the district with greater consideration than was given to any other outlying area. If, said Mr.’ Hornblow, the Minister sought to transfer this cottage hospital to the Board —which he did not think he Minister would dothen every other town in the. Board’s district would be justly entitled to claim similar treatment. The policy of the Department and Board was one base hospital and to train and send out nurses where required. This policy should appeal to the common sense of every ratepayer. It was absurd, lie said, to think that the whole hospital district should- lie taxed to give preferential treatment to Otaki. Other members expressed full concurrence with the motion which was carried unanimously.