X-ray unit move criticised

Press, 16 June 1982, Page 5

X-ray unit move criticised

Parliamentary reporter Moving the onlv mobile Xray unit in the South Island has been described bv Mrs .Ann Hercus (Labour. Lyttelton) as "an enormous blunder.” The removal _pf the unit, while the North Island retained four, was an act of discrimination and was indefensible. she said. Reasons given for the'removal were inadequate. The main reason given was that the unit was picking up only a handful of cases. Mrs Hercus said. However, the unit also provided gen-

eral X-ray facilities, so it was dishonest to use only tuberculosis figures. Mrs Hercus said. The Government also asserted that the unit was handling fewer X-rays than a year or so ago. but the fact was that the unit had been ordered to restrict its activities. To then use comparative figures to justify removing it was again less than honest. Mrs Hercus said that she would like to know howmany general diseases or complaints, other than TB. had been picked up by the

unit. The fact that official records were not kept by the Department of Health was inexplicable. Even though the unit had been ordered to cover less, territory, it was still identifying. on a very conservative count, at least 50 cases of enlarged heart and 20 cases of lung cancer a year. Mrs Hercus said. She asked if there had been a deliberate strategy first to wind down the activities of the South Island unit over the last few years, and then to use this as "evi-

dence" that the demand for fhe unit was falling to the point where it could be dispensed with. The Minister of Health (Mr Malcolm) should allow the unit to continue its valuable work, and instruct it to expand its visits to as many communities as possible. Mrs Hercus said. The Minister should also instruct his department to keep all records, and not just selective ones. As a final resort, if the Minister was determined to save the cost of a unit, he should remove one of the four North Island ones.