HOSPITAL POLICY

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 915, 7 March 1930, Page 10

HOSPITAL POLICY

WELLINGTON CONFERENCE INCREASING ANNUAL COST Tress Association W ELLINGTON, Today. The question of hospital policy with special reference to the medical staffing of public hospitals was discussed at the conference convened by the Minister of Health, the Hon. A. J. Stallworthy. The Director-General of Health, Dr. T. H. A. Valintine, is presiding. At the opening yesterday Mr. Stallworthy said it was the first conference of the kind to be held in tlie Dominion and was really the fruition of the desire expressed by both the Hospital Boards’ Association and the British Medical Association. As evidencing the greater use of public hospitals, which, he said, was a feature of the hospital development all through tlie British Empire, Mr. Stallworthy submitted some interesting figures. In 1910-11, lie said, the number of beds provided in public hospitals in New Zealand was 3,218, or 3.1 a thousand of the population. In 3 928-29 the corresponding figures were 8,457 and 5.8. The average daily number of occupied beds increased from 1.9 a 1,000 to 3.7 a 1,000. The gross annual maintenance cost of public hospitals had in tlie same period increased from £200,691 to £1,206,390, disregarding indirect expenses and also expenditure on district medical nursing and ambulance services. The gross expenditure in hospital maintenance a head of the population was 3s lid in 1910-11 and 16s 6d in 1928-29. “It might be mentioned,** said tlie Minister, “that collections of patients’ fees amounted to some £45,900 in 1910-11, while for 3 928-29 over £350,000 was collected rrora this source. In this connection it is particularly interesting to note that the annual amount now received from patients is nearly double what the annual maintenance cost of the hospital was 18 years ago. “However, the fact remains that provision of public hospitals, including administrative expenses, interest and depreciation charges, involves a burden on local and general taxation exceeding £1,000,000 a year. No more requires to be said to emphasise the need for directing hospital policy along lines that will assure the greatest possible measure of co-operation between the controlling authorities and the members of the medical profession.”