PUBLIC HEALTH.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1045, 7 February 1911, Page 8

PUBLIC HEALTH.

THE NEW SCHEME." DR. VALTNTINF. OPTIMISTIC. . Soino interesting comment on the new tchenio for tho control of infectious diK'aw, whereby Hospital niul Charitable Aid Hoards will undertake the work instead of tho various local bodies, were made to a Christchurch "Press" reporter lecently by I)r. Vnlintine, Chief Health Officer for -New Zealand. "The scheme is going to work very well," said the doctor. "Those boards that Lave been approached hnvo taken lip tiio mutter very well, and "fave decided to appoint thn officers necessary to carry out the intentions of the Act, especially with regard to tho control of infectious diseases, which now devolves upon thirtysix hospital boards, instead of 385 local bodies as in the past. By this means it will bo possible for all effort in tho direction of public health to bo put on a more workable footing. Tho lack of co-ordina-tion which could only bo expected from such a number of local authorities/will, by the now scheme, be done away with. "In addition to tho control of infectious diseases, I have reason to believe," continued Dr. Vnlintine, "that with the exception of tho large centres, the local authorities will ultimately seo the advantage of delegating their other duties with regard to • tho Public Health Act to the hospital boards. "The principle under which the schema is based is that the authority which lias to innko provision for the treatment' of tho sick will also be responsible for all those matters that are l ; kely to cause sickness. In fact tho hospital boards will be responsible for the prevention as well as tho treatment of disease. Tho advantages of this can hardly' be denied. In fact, that is the trend of modern thought on the subject, as can be seen by a perusal of tho majority and minority reports of the Royal Commission, which was recently held to consider the conduct of the English Poor Laws. Reference is constantly made in these reports to the difficulties surrounding the administration of public health and charitable relief in the United Kingdom, inasmuch as the action of the Poor Law authorities is rather of tho nature of deterring persons front seeking relief, whereas tho authorities controlling public health are doing, all tliey can to encourage persons in the early stages of disease to seek medical treatment. Again .there are no less than five central departments controlling the, various branches of public health, and Poor Lav.- administration in the United Kingdom. Undnr the present Hospitals Act and its amendments, however, it will be possible to adopt most, .if not all, of the reforms suggested by'the Commission already referred to, which aTe to the effect that all matters affecting the treatment of the sick, the distribution of charitable relief, and public health matters, should be controlled by one local authority only,, and' that there should bo one central department of State for tho purposes, of directing the efforts of the authorities into the right channels. "I think," concluded ■ Dr. Valintine, "that as the hospital boards have.undertaken hll these duties, awl as the public health, hospital, and charitable aid matters are under the control of one department, it will be possible for the boards to administer the Hospitals Act with increased efficiency and economy."