OBSTETRICAL HOSPITAL

Evening Star, Issue 21718, 12 May 1934, Page 13

OBSTETRICAL HOSPITAL

SAVINGS BANK GIFT MAKES HD DIFFERENCE GOVERNMENT STILL OFFERS TWO ALTERNATIVES EARLIER STATED [Special to the ' Stak.’] WELLINGTON, May 11. In an interview to-day, the Minister of Health (Hon. J.. A. Young) defined the Government’s attitude towards the Dunedin Obstetrical Hospital proposals. The position was, he said, that it was proposed to replace the two obstetrical hospitals now functioning in Dunedin, and that concerned the Otago Hospital Board as much as the Government. It had been stated in some of the correspondence received by the Minister from women’s organisations that the £32,000 raised by the Obstetrical Society was in the hands of the Government, but that was quite wrong. The funds collected by the society in its dominion-wide appeal were never. handed to the Government, but were paid over to the Otago University authorities, in addition to a Government subsidy of £IO,OOO for the purpose of endowing a chair of obstetrics at the University. The proposal to erect a new obstetrics hospital was under consideration some years ago, but owing to the financial crisis the proposal had to be dropped early in 1931. . It was again actively revived in June last and had since been the subject of negotiation between the department and the Otago Hospital Board. The department’s last offer, involving a cash grant of approximately £17,250 in addition to a subsidy of about £3,000 from the Unemployment Board, was not accepted by the board, the recently submitted amended financial proposals of which were at present receiving consideration. ‘

It was apparent (said the Minister) that a good deal of misunderstanding existed on the part of the women’s organisations. It must not be forgotten that medical students, in doing their course of study in obstetrics, usually took only about eight of their twenty cases in, the institution under the Otago Hospital Board in connection with the Medical School in Dunedin, whereas tho other twelve were taken outside of the hospital in question, mainly in the other centres of the dominion, including even the Waikato Hospital Board’s maternity hospital at Hamilton. From these districts there had been no . complaints on the part of the boards and their medical superintendents- in meeting the convenience of the Medical School, and-they were doing it without asking for elaborate new buildings 'or other rewards. The Minister pointed out that the offer of the Dunedin Savings Bank to make a contribution of £6,000 to the cost of the building had nothing to do with the Government. It had not been made to the Government, but to the Otago Hospital Board. He also pointed out that the present Government had made no promise to build a hospital at a cost of £50,000. The attitude of the Government was> made plain by the Minister when replying to a deputation which waited on him in Dunedin towards the end of November last. The deputation was informed that the Public Works Department had gone carefully into tho question of reconditioning St. Helens, which could bo done for an estimated cost of £8,150. On tho other hand there was the from tho Hospital Board to erect a new building at an estimated cost, of £23,370, which, with expenses of sitc.and equipment, would amount to £30,000. It was proposed in that connection for the Government to make a grant of £IO,OOO, leaving the balance of £20,000 as an obligation on the Hospital Board. It was estimated that there would be voluntary contributions of at least £I,OOO, but assuming that there was nothing in the way of voluntary contributions, the board would require to finance that £20,0Q0, of which the Government would provide £IO,OOO by way of subsidy. Thus the remaining £IO,OOO would require to be made up from the levies of the contributory local bodies. , “ The position,” concluded the Minister, “resolves itself into the fact that the board, must accept one of these ..two proposals.”

STILL UNDER CONSIDERATION HOSPITAL BOARD’S FINAL OFFER When asked to comment this morning on the existing state of affairs* the chairman of the Otago Hospital Board (Mr W. E. S. Knight) said that the final offer of the Otago Hospital Board to the Public Health Department was that the board was willing to accept £20,000 in cash and the St., Helens Hospital buildings and land, the board to find the balance of the money without recourse to further Government subsidy on levy, but subject to the receipt of £3,000 from the Unemployment Board. To that proposal ho reply had been received, except an inquiry as to the exact methods the board proposed to adopt in . raising the balance of the money, apart from the suggested Government grant, .the original Dunedin Savings Bank gift of £I,OOO (which has since been increased to £6,000), and the Unemployment Board subsidy. To that inquiry the Hospital Board had replied advising tho department that the finance would come from the sale of both the St. Helens and the Batchelor sites and: by levy. The whole matter was still under consideration. .