A SOCIAL EVIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 August 1922, Page 5

A SOCIAL EVIL.

NEW LEGISLATION WANTED, EVIDENCE AT INQUIRY. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, August 8. The special committee of the Board' of Health on venereal diseases is sitting to-day. Mr. W. H. Triggs, chairman, said the committee was anxious to hear evts ; dence, but few witnesses had come for*, ward yet. He pointed out that every** one with knowledge of, the subject haA a duty to the community to give thetß knowledge to the committee and thej, public. He’ did not suppose the com-< mittee could find new facts in additioni to what British and European inquiries had reported, but it was necessary to ascertain the conditions in New Zealand. The important result would o® to give the public an education which most people sadly needed. It has not been decided whether the committee will visit other centres.

Dr. Watt, director of the division of public hygiene, said that the number of cases of syphilis and gonorrhoea treated for the first time at clinics weret] Syphilis, 1920, 453 cases; 1921, 367;] 1922, 217. Gonorrhoea, 1920, 486; 1921, 916; 1922, 502.

Reasons for advocating new legislation were; (1) Existing legi-dation does not-, give departmental officers sufficient power to deal with cases which were ■referred to them, and which were frequently regarded by the public as cases requiring action by the department in the public interest; (2) at present there] was not sufficient power to ensure tinuity treatment; (3) New Zealandk was lagging behind other countries. KB] this sphere of legislation. Witness outlined the * • sought, including compulsory tion by key numbers, the name hnd ad< : dess not to be divulged so long as th® 1 patient continued treatment, when the patient failed his name would be forwarded to the Director-General of Health for compulsory treatment;] patients must undergo' treatment tilt cured; compulsory examination of sus-. pects under safeguards; it would also be made illegal to advertise drugs or inn. struments to cure venereal disease.