PUBLIC HEALTH.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 October 1920, Page 5

PUBLIC HEALTH.

CHANGE OF RESPONSIBILITY. ■ DENTAL TREATMENT IN SCHOOLS. By Trtegiaph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. The Public Health Bill, which was i I? a d a second time pro forma, was 1 taken, in committee in the House of Re--1 preventatives to-night. The Hon. C. J. Parr, who is in oharge > of the Bill, said the measure was mainly of a consolidating nature. The present law on the subject was twenty years old, and required being brought up-to-date. The principal new feature of the measure was that it, for the first time, defined the responsibility of local bodies and the department on the subject of public health. This responsibility was extremely indefinite at the , time of the great influenza epidemic, ; with the result tEat great confusion ! was caused. He wished to make it , clear that the department could not undertake the prevention of disease, and , neither could hospital boardß do itj that was emphatically the duty of the local authority, which was best equipped to look after the cleanliness of backyards, etc., and the efficiency of sanitary arrangements which this Bill provided for During the discussion, Mr. Parr stated that the department was experiencing the greatest difficulty in securing the services of sufficient male dentists to carry out effective treatment of school children. It was, therefore, proposed to give young- wonien two years' training, sufficient to enable them to do simple j stopping and treat simple dental troubles. Mr. W. A. Veitch (Wanganui) commented on the amount of malnutrition prevailing amongst the children of the Dominion, which was reflected in the large proportion of our young men who were unfit for military service. . Hs attributed this to the high cost of food produced in our. country, which resulted in the children not getting sufficient food. The Bill was read a third time and passed. *