DOCTORS ANNOYED

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 68, 22 March 1933, Page 8

DOCTORS ANNOYED

TERMS OF A LETTER

SHARP REPLY MADE

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.)

CHEISTCHUECH, This Day. "To make allegations, as you have done, of medical men in trying to escape or^cvade your responsibilities is not. only offensive; if is foolish and contemptible." ' •

This was the concluding sentence of a letter from the Canterbury Division of the British Medical Association received at today's meeting of the North Canterbury Hospital Board.: The communication, couched in forcible terms, was evoked by a previous letter from the board to the friendly societies concerning the sending of lodge members by friendly society doctors to the outpatients' department of The hospital.

Members of the board expressed surprise at tho tone of the letter and referred the matter to tho Hospital Committee for a report.

The letter to tho friendly societies stated: —"Tho board will- be much obliged if you take tho matter up and impress upon medical practitioners that it is unreasonable to send cases for treatment to the outpatients' departmeut that should rightly come within the duties they are called upon to perform when undertaking the position of medical officer of a society such as yours."

The B.M.A. letter stated:—"We have received from several friendly societies a copy of a communication which you have sent them in which you take it upon yourselves to criticise lodge doctors for sending to the outdoor department of the Christehurch Hospital cases which you seem to think should be dealt with in the patients' homes. In the first place we cannot protest too emphatically against your action in sending such a biased and unfair communication to the various lodges without our being a'sked for some explanation. Accusations are directed against lodge doctors in general which, we submit, will not bear investigation from your point of view."