MILITARY MEDICAL BOARDS

Evening Star, Issue 16628, 10 January 1918, Page 2

MILITARY MEDICAL BOARDS

COURT OF INQUIRY. A Court of Inquiry was opened at Christa church- yesterday to investigate charges made by Dr H. T. J. Thacker, M.P., a captain in the Reserve of Officers, New Zealand Medical Corps, and others, in respect to the conduct of members iof the Military Medical Boards which have done duty -in the Christchurch, military district. The members of the Court -were t Major A. E. Loach (Reservo of Officers, president), Captain F. H. Salter (Reserve of Officers), Major F. G. Gibson (Now Zealand Medical Corps), Captain W. Irving (New Zealand Medical Corps), and Captain F. J. Osborne-Smith (Ist Canterbury Regiment). After the Court had been formally opened, tbo President said that the Court had been convened primarily for the purpose of enabling Captain Thacker to justify statements made in the following telegram sent by him to the Minister of Defence 1 ; “Four military medical examiners heroare insulting in their remarks to recruits. Please -see that this is stopped at once.’’ The allegations were very wide in their character. The president pointed out to Captain Thacker the necessity of outlining specific charges in the Court, with the names of the officers concerned, and the place, date, and time of the occurrences, if possible, in order that a full opportunity might bo- given to the officers concerned to be present and to hear the evidence, to give evidence, to cross-examine witnesses, or to call evidence on their own behalf. Secondly, the inquiry was convened to hear - any charges made against any military medical board which had done duty in the Canterbury military district. He suggested that Captain Thacker should hand m a list of his witnesses, and also a list of his charges, and that afterwards the Court should call for other witnesses. This would give the Court an idea of what it had to do. After some discussion regarding the scope of the inquiry and'the payment- of witnesses, the President said that Justice would be done. Further, all statements made by witnesses wore absolutely privileged, even if made with malice. Evidence was then called. Jerome M'Anulty (farmer, Motlwen) said he had been under Dr Thacker for six or seven years for renal bleeding. When ho attended the medical examination at Ashburton on December 5 he presented a certificate to the medical officer, and told him of his complaint. Tbo officer (Lieu-tenant-colonel Ewart) opened the certificate, glanced down it, and said : “ ITm!' Thacker-’ - He passed it to the othcr officers, saying: "Look—Thacker.” Then ho said to witness: " Look, this is no good to us at all. It’s us that are testing you, not Thacker.” The officer picked up the certificate again, and seemed to sneer at it, and kept repeating; “ Seems to bo specific.” Witness arid the officer did not really examine -his kidneys, and lie took exception to the hostile nature and offensive attitude' of Dr Ewart to the certificate. In cross-examination, witness said the medical officer’s whole attitude was insulting, and he considered it was worth making a complaint about. Ernest William Webb (farmer, Rakaia) said he saw the officer pass the certificate to the other doctor, and exclaim -. "Thacker seems to be specific.” Ho also heard the doctor say -. “It is not Thacker who is examining you. It is us.” Witness left M’Anulty in the -room, and as ho came out he said to M’Anulty : “ I think they gave you a pretty rough spin.” Lieutenant-colonel William -Ewart, N.Z.M.C., giving evidence in rebuttal, said a good many certificates were produced to Die medical boards. In hia experience, more came from one medical practitioner than from any other. They had come markedly more from Dr Thacker than from other medical practitioners. His examination of M’Anulty differed from that of other, reservists only in the length of time it took to examine him. Witness gave him a thorough examination, and gave much more time to his case than was usual. He emphatically denied that at any time was ho insulting ,to M’Anulty, who appeared aggrieved throughout, and was antagonistic in his manner to witness all the time. He further denied saying “ H’m EThacker,” but might have said “Yes” or “H’m! From Dr Thacker.” M’Anulty appeared to resent witness not accepting Dr Thacker’s certificate as an excuse for classing him G2 without further examination. Samuel Cooper (reservist, Christchurch) said be went to Dr Thacker, because he had been hurt and insulted at Iris medical examination in Christchurch on November 13. He was Just about again -after being laid up nearly eight months with a broken leg, and the examining doctor told him to hop on it. Witness said ho couldn’t, but made an attempt, which caused him pain. The officer said : “ 1 want none of your nonsense here. You can. hop on it better than that. The log’s strong enough.” Witness identified Dr Ewart as I the medical man concerned, j Lieutenant-colonel Ewart: I don’t remember anything at all about it. Witness said the manner in which Dr Ewart spoke to and swore at him was worth complaining about. . It was not somuch the word used as the general -offensive manner 'which he complained about. Dr Thacker wanted the medical members of the board to examine the leg, but Major Gresson (representing the Defence Department) said there was no necessity, tho complaint being against tho alleged insult and not against the medical classification. Dr Ewart, called by Major Gresson. said be did not remember Cooper at all, but he did not think the account he had given of his examination a likely one. He had never used such language to any recruit. Captain G. M. Lester, N.Z.M.C., who was with Dr' Ewart at the examination of Cooper, said be did not hear tho language alleged to have been used. Herbert Francis Wood (reservist, Christchurch), who had been a patient of Dr Thacker’s for over three years, suffering from rheumatism and acute sciatica, said he was medically examined about November 10. Ho handed Dr Thacker’s certificate to Captain Lester, who passed it on to Dr Ewart. “ After waiting half an hour,” said tho witness, “ I came before him, and he asked me if I had boon attended by any doctor. I told him he had just read my doctor’s certificate. Ho asked me how Dr Thacker could attend, me when he was in Wellington in Parliament. . I told him that it must bo a queer kind of Parliament, because Dr Thacker bad attended me every day except, Sundays. Dr Ewart asked me what treatment my doctor had given mo, and I replied: Electric treatment and massage.’ Dr Ewart said i ‘Humph, that’s a nice kind of treatment,’ in a sneering; way, I told Dr Ewart that I went to Hanmer on my doctor’s orders, and he replied: ’ Humph, that’s a nice place to go to.’ ” Witness added that he complained to Dr Thacker about the way he had been treated. Dr Ewart, called, said he remembered examining Wood, whose view that he (witness) discounted the certificate was not a correct one. There was nothing in the whole examination to account for tho attitude taken up by Wood, and witness could not understand it. Ho denied that he - had ever criticised the treatment by other doctors to recruits. The President asked if anyone else In the room had any complaints to make against the conduct of the military boards in Canterbury, and several men stepped forward and .nandod in their names. Tho Court then adjourned till Thursday. 3