Book Critical Of Doctor Shortage

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32118, 14 October 1969, Page 7

Book Critical Of Doctor Shortage

(New Zealand Preu Auociation) WELLINGTON, October 12. A critical account of the doctor shortage in New Zealand is given by the secretary of the New Zealand Medical Association, Dr Erich Geiringer, in a book to be released on Friday.

Entitled “If Doctors Grew On Trees,” the 100-page book , tells bow the shortage arose, how big it is, and. offers a i remedy. The doctor shortage could be an issue in the General Election in November, but today Dr Geiringer, when explaining Ms book, said that he could not say at this stage if it would be an influence.

as neither of the two main parties had issued its manifesto. “The book says they should not vote for someone who wifi not give the proper cures for the shortage,” he said.

Dr Geiringer said he wrote the book because the association was getting nowhere with its attempts to influence newspapers to look at the situation. The national executive derided that the most direct way would be a book that came out shortly before the election.-

The book says that the doctor shortage is growing too rapidly to be dealt with in any way other than the establishment of a third medical school. Within two years of the school being established there could be 400 medical students in training. Such an increase would be 200 per cent, and not 50 per cent as

the Government was proposing, Dr Geiringer said.