“Apathy Could Wreck St John Ambulance”

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31661, 23 April 1968, Page 16

“Apathy Could Wreck St John Ambulance”

“The St John Ambulance Association is at the stage where apathy from the public or among its own members could wreck the ship,” the director of the association (Mr A. T. Gandell) said at the annual meeting of the Canterbury and West Coast centre of the association in [ Christchurch last night. In an age of inventiveness , and advances in technology ' there were many examples of i organisations which ran to the ' Government for cover when • something went wrong, he . said. I It made one wonder if there , was any initiative left in the country but he had been reassured by the work of the - St John Ambulance, he said. Mr Gandell, the former i General Manager of Railways, • said he had been tremends ously impressed with the as- > sociation’s work within the I railways. s “The association earned the enthusiastic support of the

management at all levels in the railways,” he said. The strength of the association lay in the attitudes and responses of its members and not in the necessary rules of the association. Mr Gandell said he was concerned that more was not being done for hygiene. Hepatitis was becoming more prevalent and it was a direct result of a lapse in public and personal hygiene. Officers elected: President, the Rt Rev. A. K. Warren; chairman, Mr W. A. McAllister; deputy-chairman, Mr E. T. Roberts; secretary-treasur-er, Mr G. A. Brown: principal medical officer, Dr J. R. Dawson; two interested citizens, the Rev. K. J. Clark, Dr W. J. Pryor; honorary auditor, Mr K. T. Sugden; executive committee, Bishop Warren, Messrs McAllister, Roberts, Dr Dawson, Messrs A. I. Eaglesome, J. H. Skinner, G. A. Brown.