HOSPITAL BOARD

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 109, 1 February 1929, Page 18

HOSPITAL BOARD

TENDERING FOR STORES UNEMPLOYMENT PROBLEM The Wellington Hospital Board met yesterday. There were present: Messrs. F. Castle, (in the chair), G. Petherick, W. J. Appleton, F. Bennett, D. Campbell, T. H. Gill, J. H. Helliwell, A. J. McCurdy, C. B. Robinson, E. Windley, Rev. H. Van Staveren, Mrs. Preston, Mrs. Fraser, and Mrs. McVicar. Mrs. Fraser drew attention to the fact that the board was paying one firm £BOOO for stores without putting the supplies up for tender, and she thought that tenders should be called on principle. 1 Mr. W. J. Appleton supported the principle, stating that the board bought £7OO worth of goods from the firm each month, which was wrong, without calling tenders publicly. He thought, however, it would be a mistaken policy for the board to tun its own store. - “A blanket would have covered the amount of stores the board used to supply at one time,” said Mr. G. Petherick, “but to-day it would mean making poor people pay 6d. or Bd. tramfare to come and get perhaps a 6d. loaf. These stores enabled the people to get their groceries at the nearest shop, as they had branches everywhere. Other firms could raise the matter with the board, if they thought it was in their own interests to do so.” Mr. McCurdy said the firm dealt faithfully with the board in regard to quality and weight of the goods, and the price was lower than the Charitable Aid Committee had been able to get. The Rev. H. Van Staveren was only concerned in seeing that the poor people were assisted, he said. No further action was taken. Dental Work. Mr. J. H. Helliwell drew attention to increased expenditure in the dental department. The amount of work done during the month cost £241 165., against £165 2s. for December, 1927, while the fees received in the two periods were approximately the same, and fewer cases were treated , last month as against the preceding December. He thought these matters might be given some explanation. Mr. Appleton remarked that dentures formed a large proportion of the work. The committee is to look into the matter. , Unemployed. Mrs. Preston asked the board if it , would not be possible to bring before the Hospital Boards’ Association conference the question of the unemployed and also convalescent poor people. . She thought something could be done in the way of placing some of these men on farms which had come back into the hands of, the Government, and give them vocational training, producing ■ honey, poultry, eggs, and also growing vegetables, which could be supplied to the hospital. The Hospital Board should also receive greater assistance from the Government in dealing with the unemployed, and it was necessary to take steps soon, as .they would soon be entering on another winter. If such’farms could be obtained from the Government, convalescents might also be sent to them for three weeks or a month, during which period they would be able to do a little light work and be sooner restored to health than by going back to a board-ing-house. The chairman advised Mrs. Preston to submit a remit to the next board meeting. so that if acceptable it could be sent on for the conference in March.