P.S.A ‘will fight closing’

Press, 18 June 1982, Page 4

P.S.A ‘will fight closing’

Any attempt to scrap the South Island mobile X-ray unit would be “vigorously fought,” said the Canterbury regional secretary of the Public Service Association, Mr J. M. McKenzie, yesterday. ■ VT will not accept that it will close,” he said. “If the Minister of Health (Mr Malcolm) or anybody else makes a definite announcement to scrap it. we. will rally air the forces of the employee groups and community services to fight this ’razor gang’ approach.” r The unit was part of basic community health and part of the welfare concept that New Zealanders had been taxed for. To take it away would be “completely robbing" the taxpayer,, said Mr

McKenzie. To many people it was not a matter of electing to use the free X-ray unit but one of necessity because they could not go elsewhere. The North Canterbury Hospital Board dropped its free, non-diagnostic chest Xray in March this year to help cut costs. A charge of $l6 has been made for the service.

Private X-ray services cost about $22, said Mr McKenzie.

People living in remote areas relied on regular visits by the unit. Residents of Karamea had lost their resident doctor and medical facilities at Buller Hospital had been scaled down on the understanding that the unit would visit the

area at least once every two years, he said. It was wrong for the department to label the mobile unit as a unit for tracing tuberculosis, and then point out that only two incidences of the disease had been detected in two years. Mr McKenzie said that in 1981 the unit also detected 12 cases of possible cancer, needing urgent follow-up by doctors, 155 lung abnormalities or enlarged hearts, and one heart abnormality. “It is a community health service of X-ray facilities. It will pick up tuberculosis as well as it picks up any other disorder.” he said. The Medical Officer of Health in Christchurch, Dr W. A, Malpfess, yesterday denied that the department

was conducting • a campaign against anyone who had told the P.S.A. that the unit was being investigated. He also said that neither he nor anybody in the Christchurch office of the department was qualified to make statements on the justification of the unit. The future of all five mobile X-ray units was being studied by the Government, he said. No firm decision had been made, although a lot of speculation had been heard. “the Minister has to look at a wide range of factors before he makes a decision.” The units had been designed to detect tuberculosis but when lots of people were involved the units were bound to pick up other disorders. said Dr Malpress.