TREATING DISEASE

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1060, 26 August 1930, Page 8

TREATING DISEASE

STATE SHOULD CONTROL MEDICAL SERVICES DR. HASTINGS’S PROPOSALS A suggestion that the Stat« should take a greater interest in the health of the people of the Dominion and should introduce a system of treat, ment, which he claims, would be i v finitely more valuable than the present methods of healing, was advanced fc v Dr. J. P. Hastings, in the course 0 f an address on Sunday evening.

The prevention of disease is obviousir an important part of any scheme o' | State medicine, he pointed out in a rel cent lecture. Already there was a Public Health Department and a system of medical inspection in schook but he considered that these service* should be extended to include instruction to children regarding diet, sun. light and exercise. Annually there wer about 4,000 operations for appendicitis here, a disease unknown among the Sikhs of India with their diet and wav of living. Public lectures and official publications would also be made under the scheme.

The general practitioner would be the basis of the scheme, which would aim at preserving the dignity and pres, tige of the profession while extending j the scope of benefits. Above all, th* j standard of living of medical men j should not be menaced since obviously ! inadequate payment would lead to disi satisfaction and a falling-off i n the I standard of work, disastrous to profe?i sion and public alike. Any scheme for 1 “flat-rate” payments should not i countenanced, but a separate fee paid ! for every visit, the State being respori sible for the amount. The patient would still have the right to nominal* his doctor. EXTEND LODGE SYSTEM Dr. Hastings pointed out that cer* tain medical benefit societies ana lodges exemplify in the embryo tte best State system, and could easily be extended to cover the whole Dominion. The Auckland Tramways Club, which comprises 500 workers, actually extends its benefits to approximately 2,000 people, when the wives and children are included. Every worker par* in Is Id a week, being entitled in return to medical attention and medicine If more than 10 visits are required in a month the case may be reviewed and sent on to the Public Hospital. This would form a basis for the big State scheme Dr. Hastings contemplates. After a certain number of visits a practitioner would be bound to call in a specialist, and, after a consultation, would decide whether the case should go on to a hospital. There would be no objections if a patient wished to pay privately for further treatment than that provided by the State. ADVANCING FAMILY DOCTOR A scheme for the advancement of the family doctor would be an essential. From time to time the DirectorGeneral, who would be the leading medical man of the country, would appoint further specialists from the ranks of the profession, judging qualifications on the basis of ability and zeal shown in the discharge of ordinary duties. Any special training then necessary would be undertaken by the State.

In conclusion Dr. Hastings emphasised the good work done by the British Aledical Association in the Dominion in the interests of the public and of the doctors. In England the association, had brought forward a comprehensive scheme and he considered best results could be achieved here by a combination of his proposals and those of the British Association.