DOCTORS AND SURCERY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 948, 15 October 1910, Page 10

DOCTORS AND SURCERY.

rj "PRO BONO PUBLICO'S" i - , COMMENTS. • Sir,—l; \ noticed i a'-.'letter written by ! r lro Bono Publico" in The Dominion [.' ;on ;October. 8 '.upbraiding. the''doctors I'- ; i 'tliat [■ ; :U)r.; llodorinuntl quotes, iii his book that k r-appendictimyAldlls, - many .-and «ll .who submit to;.it; r > s. ■

I Well,;. let mb .-state that since - : the K .doctors, havo started to remove tho appendix, the' mortality - from-appendicitis !. has. been lowered to -.ii very great ex;tent. <. Twenty years, ago people used have ; appendicitis,;, as .often' ; as now, ! 'but. t.hen the. malady used-to be classed >->:iunder..ihflamm'ation of, the : bowels,': per- !.; foration,' and peritonitis! used. to' set 1. in, -:ca-using .the . speedy death of tho '. patient. - Fortunately, nowadays,; the Aw .doo'tbrs'. have ; 'found out that- lappendi|fK.citis; '• is inflammation or the appendix fci veriniforinis.,;'jTo..' operate , is tho ; only euro, for 'if; a persou once.: has,;; appensliciiis it alwayscomes/back- again jf .' the appendix is not' removed." Then,' ; with theso recurrent attacks'- of inflammation, .-.an',.abscess '.forms, : : which, 'if not speedily removed by' the knife, i 'bursts,. ' causing - perforation,. - which Ei®leads;.to,'suppurative ..peritonitis,'' and !;! death ' ensues. . And ' frequently ; this appendix: is . found to - be • diseased . and | ft: gangrenous'. So really the - best' treat-' I*.; ment is the knifo. V p}': . : As for. . the :.'in, : tho f - disease's', earliest. stages is the •' best f cure. The last. Medical Conference held: . at Homo discussed cancer aid-'a remedy; t>. and they, all agreed that an operation' 1 in, the earliest stage was -the; only-satis-' 1. factory cure. —I am, etc., SCOTLAND. October 13,-1910. I,r .A ; SUPPORTER OF HEALIH ASSOCLVTIONS. Sir,—l am heartily, in . accord ; with the" V proposal of ; . your, correspondent v '.'Pro Publico," a-s to tho good to bo by forming healti akociations for fj the.' purposes stated in his letter; with: j ' branches I .throughout, the: country. The !. laws .of-health are really simple, after s: all,. and', don't.take, long to '-.learn, and r if one -learns them, and follows them, p;'; ;there will be: little need for. doctors. ' Those who havo given the. subject any /•- thought at all. liave long been convinced te of the need of drastic, reform both in {■5.; ;<thCi system of practice ,of medicine and jsj .' surgery. It is abundantly evident the U • profession is not progressive enough to reform 'itself. This • reform will only come when sufficient pressure is brought J- to bear by . the thinking public, who f'S are.beginning'to see that some guaranf . tee is needed tljat they will not be f drugged : or operated to death when Uthey are- sick,.-if. a; doctor,'is brought f near them. ■ .; -

j . near them. ■ .; ■ - pjji;:v TVere any-- other trade. or ' calling taksuch a toll in human life as is now i. ' being annually offered up to-the fetish :"' ; i a:great .-outcry - would been , made, and something done ff-ti'W- stop it long ago. ' A. general feeling

of distrust and dissatisfaction with tho usual methods of doctors seems 10 pervade all classes. The average man has tho opinion that altogether un-called-for and unnecessary examinations and. operations';, are of everyday occurrence. "The "public;',or rather tho sick part of the ...public, if' they have a doctor'near them, are at the mercy of a class tho law does not hold responsible for thoir actions—professional actions I mean. There are people in their graves to-day in New Zealand that 'in;, all/probability would liavo been alive and well if. they had kept away from ■the Loolcrat tho deaths* under .-chloroform, Minder.' operations,; from the aftor-ett'ects of operations,' froih mistakes made. with , drugs, and from tho offeots of drugs-whero 110 mistakes are made. Tho operator's methods are violent and unnatural, and always very -risky. Sick peoplo ; would often get well if left aloiio to nature, ;but when' tho ■iveak body has to stand the shock of the . doctor's methods,' as well as tho illness, it proves too much. For myself, I would always far rather trust to nature, for a cure when I got ill, than I would trust ;myself to tho tonder mercies'.'of a'doctor) who relied upon drugs and operations. For, let it be remem.bered, it is,, after all, always. Nature, •tlie healing; powci', of Nature within us, that works the; cure every : time,, and not: tho doctor. : The doetor can't; cure the.-slightest ailment; .tho most;he can do; is to see the patient so conditioned as to aid, Nature.' What, he generally does .is to"rota;rd;Nature's efforts to cure.

• I have personal knowledge .'of ; a case whero a doctor'was attending a lady for ono of the. ailments peculiar to her ■sex. ■ Ho, made a prelimnary- examina- ! tioii' th'at" was jprove'd; a'fterwafds to' bo uncalled, led;her,to, believe an operation was! nccessafy : Tlie ! liusband was. not consulted about, tlie matter at all.-' The operation was performed. The husband was much upset about it. He considered 'that ihe operation was. altogether '.uncalled 1 fbr ; and that' Nature was not ~even given ; a chance 'to right her-: .;s,elf'V-and-'to; satisfy -himself • ho-•sub-mitted a detailed statement ;of . . tlie caso to a : leading London physician (who has a large practice,, in .cases of ■ this sort, and the. balance-of .his' advice and opinion was overwhelmingly against the operation being'needed at all. What is ono to do in cases of this sort? Tho strongest denunciation;-.came. .from_ the ranks of,tho profession. Note this: 1 '-'I wish not to'detract from the exalted profession to which ,1.,-haye ;. the" honour; to;- belong, ahd. which .includes many of my warmest and most valued friends. : Yet it'cannot;'answer. to hiy conscience -to withhold the aeknowof .•'mj"'' ; finh'! belief that; the medical profession r.(with ..its (prevailing mode of ; practice) is productive of vastly."more evil than, good,, and ;were it absolutely abolished, hiaiikind would bo: infinitely; the; gainer.■"T J -Dr 1 .. -Fr»ncis Coggeswell, 'of Boston.! .. ~ Dr..; Frank; says: . ''Thour 'sands ; are annually slaughtered .in the quiet sick rooniv . Governments should at ; once;.;eithe"r." banish ,; me'dicdr. men V and; . proscribe their : art or: theyslioiild adopt some better means to protect the-lives.of tho people than at present prevail,". when they look far less after, the practice of this^daingefous fessioii and the murders committed in it, than aft-er t-lie honest trade."'- -.-; V _ :

' .; James Johnson, M.D., F.R.S., editor . of. "The ; Medico-Qiirurgical.. • Review," .says: "I declare as my conscientious .conviction, founded ori;-'long experience; ■ and .'reflection, '/that if- there. was not a ''"single'"'pl^ wife', chemist, apothecary, druggist,, nor drug on the,, face of the;; ea : rthj :;there would be .lessvsioknesV and less;.; mortality,.than'now; prevail;'' . :i'- -i;? .; M (Tlie, who;;enjoyed :'poi-liap,SvJhe. largest Imdst/ifasMon- ; able '.practice that;,over, fell to"the. lot of any physician iii the world declared ' aft'er'.forty years'; experience : "that he • had, no'.faith in. physic,'.' and; : on;his rdeath-bed. frequehtly;exdaiitiie|iif'l wish I could he; sure,-1- : lia'd 5 n6t 'killed more than I have cured!" " ' •-

.: JoKnMason,. M.D., F.R.S., / author ■of "Study of Medicine," etc., says: "Tfi'e science of: medicine is a barbarous jargon .and tho effccts- ofyour, medicines ' on tlio human system aro in the highest degree', uncertain, •/ except,- indeed, %th ajr tliey have, destroyed 'more lives, ■ than war, pestilence. ,and famine combined." | Dr. T. li. Allinson says:.; "The sur-geon's-real. use..is in cases of accident, tostiunch' bloodi •to prevent; the person Weeding- .'to 1 cases 'i;o ? amputate limbs fliat' cannot 'other-,, wiso; be saved, to reduce dislocation and . set/broken limbsV. 'i 'waiit surgeons to study more adtural' cure, hygienic rules : and ".the.: prevention, of disease.l want. ■;the^;l»..turn'.'their', attention "more to tfie' l prevention of; cancer -than : .to its removal.';' 'Instead; of i showing" how tap a distended • pericardium Qicart sac), .pleura, or ovary, I would ask them _to give- attention ...to ; the means of. curing it ; without breaking'the' continuity, of the skin.; As it. came hy natural means, so it can' bo . removed by 'natural means:' . W : . "A good many surgical diseases really want'hygienic treatment aloiip. .'lnstead of using the inife or 'tho< : deadly - drug we must use all tho natural means of cure at our command, then indeed, and not .till-<then;': wiH. surgery he .a ,boon to: humanity.';'. I want'.to-'see the surgeon looked up to; as a man who will uso every means in his power to avoid an operation and will only- then operate if lifo is in,danger."—Lam, etc., MEDICAL EEFORM. ': ■ Havelock' North,. Bay, . ■ . -. October 10, 1910. . '. ■