MEDICAL SERVICE

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 53, 31 August 1934, Page 7

MEDICAL SERVICE

OUTDOOB BELIEF

THE SYSTEM EXTENDED

As tlio result of a conference of representatives of the British Medical Association ana the Wellington Hospital Board, a number of important recommendations have been made to the Hospital Board. These . recommendations were considered and adopted at a meeting of the board last evening. The board agreed to operate through its relief department an outdoor medical service on the following terms and conditions:—The board will pay all general medical practitioners in tho city of Wellington and throughout the whole district over which the board has jurisdiction, for attendance (other than obstetric or severe surgical cases) on indigent persons, 7s Cd for the first visit, and 5s for subsequent visits between tie hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.; and 12s (3d per visit between the- hours of 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. Payment will be made subject to the following conditions: (a) That application has been made to tho relief officer for medical attention, and an authority has been issued by him, cither directly _or through the applicant, to the medical man to attend-the patient; (b) that, in cases where application has not been made to the relief officer, the patient is, in the opinion, of the practitioner to whoni the application is made, an indigent person. In order to determine the indigence of the patient or family, the medical man should make . reasonable inquiry and should ask for and inspect the unemployment registration, card, where such is available. It should bo understood that this medical service is not available to members of friendly; societies. NDGHT EMERGENCY. In moving the adoption of the proposed arrangements, the chairman (Mr. I\ Castle) stated that'they would enable certain people to call in a medical practitioner in an emergency without getting an order from the hospital relief .office. Cases of illness might occur during the night, when it would be impossible to get an order from the office. In urgent cases, poor people would now be enabled to call in the services of a. doctor, who would be able.to claim payment from the hospital board, and also for subsequent visits if authorised. Discretion, of course, would have to be exercised. In order to obtain such benefits, people would have to be either on relief work or on charitable aid. If tho cases were not urgent, an order would have to be obtained from the relief, committee or its officer. • It had been arranged that during the night medicines could be obtained from the central pharmacy, and during the day mea'eines could be obtained from any; phai'macy at schedule rates. Mrs. McVicar asked if families eouH call in their own medical attendant. The chairman: The choice of medical man. is left to the patient. Dr. D. Maedonald Wilson asked if provision for milage had been made for calls to country districts. The chairman: I am afraid that' poiht has been overlooked. If it should arise, I think we will have to meet it. Mr. J. Glover: It means that the provision will apply to the hospital district. " ," . Mrs. MeVicar: It! will only: apply to special cases. Mr. C. A.'L. Treadwell: "It means that indigent people who cannot come to the hospital will be able to get efficient medical attention immediately, and doctors will be paid for-their attention to such cases. I think it is art advance in1 enabling indigent people to get medical treatment, whereas otherwise they -might be embarrassed financially. The chairman: I should like to say, that the system has been in operation for over, twenty years, but .the system required an order to- be obtained from the Telief officer before a medical man could make a claim for attending such.' cases. I think it will be admitted that that hardly met the position in. emergency cases.', i Mr. Glover: I quite agree. ' The chairman: lean see no difficulty in adopting it. It is not, I hope, going to be a very Wg affair, but it will provide for emergency cases. We ean,*af any rate, experiment for a time with regard to it. AN URGENT PROBLEM. Dr. Campbell Begg said he would support the proposal as a contribution towards the solution of an urgent problejn. It only dealt, however, with the fringe of the problem. It was well known that many doctors gave free service, in numbers of such cases. On the other hand, numbers of people did not receive medical attention because they were too proud to accept what they regarded as charity. That aspect of the problem required consideration. The proposal was, he thought, a step in the right direction. The adoption of some scheme of medical insurance must, in liia opinion, eventually come about. Dr. Begg remarked that there were some 4000 relief* workers and their families in and about Wellington. That might represent about 12,000 individuals. It was generally considered that .the average Tatio of doctors to population was 1 to 1000 or 1500. "These unfortunate people," added Dr. Begg, "are. subject to exactly the same ills as those more 'fortunate. On the ratio I have mentioned it looks as if it would take four.to eight full-time doctors to provide services at the same .rate'as the average. This is an extremely serious problem, and, as I havo indicated, must be taken up on > national basis.'* Mr. E. N. Campbell said that i* Petone, and, he thought, in the Hut* district, the district nurse visited sue% cases and formed an opinion, as tf whether medical attention was nece* sary. He did not know what the attft tnde of the doctors would be in regarf to people applying for medical servic# where such attention was not coitf sidered necessary. Such cases fre» quently occurred. The proposal opened up a big question. It was i;. move in. the light direction, but serious consideration must be- given to the1 eases of people who really did Lot require medical treatment. . Mrs. J.K. Preston also thought the proposal was a step in the right direction. In her opinion it would eventually mean the appointment of almoners in connection with the relief department of the hospital. Such officers were now appointed by hospitals in Great Britain.

Tho report of tho committee was adopted. *