HOSPITAL BOARDS.

Grey River Argus, 26 February 1926, Page 5

HOSPITAL BOARDS.

; CONFERENCE CONCLUDES. — Many Remits Dealt With. (Per rress Association.) DUNEDIN. Feb. 25. The Hospital Boards’ Conference concluded to-day. The principal business was the discussion of remits. I Remits from the various Boards were (dealt with as follows: — South Canterbury: That the Government be asked to financially assist Boards tn return undesirable immigrants. —Adopt ed. booth Canterbury: That the necessitv of providing pensions for chronic I invalids, and their dependants, be ; strongly urged on the Government. — I Adopted. I South Canterbury: That the GovernI meat bo urged to provide an institution where deserting husbands could be employed on production works, and thus help to maintain their wives and families. —Adopted. Ashburton. — That the Department be asked to request the Government to bring down legislation, giving the Hospital Boards the right to have a charge on compensation in respect of those persons who are treated in hospital and become entitled to compensation.—Referred to executive. North Canterbury.— That, in the interests of public health, legislation be obtained requiring Municipalities, responsible for n population of 20,000 nr

over to prepare town planning schemes for presentation to the Minister of Health, by a date to be arranged, along the lines of the English Act. —Carried on the 20,000 being altered to 30,000.

North Canterbury, — That the Government Departmental regulations in regard to the inspection of dairies and dairy herds be hevised, brought up to dat°, and more rigidly enforced. North Canterbury.— That the clause in the Municipal Corporations Act empowering municipalities to* establish milk stations, etc., be reaffimred. — Adopted. Wanganui.— That the Government be recommended to amend the National Provident Fund Act to permit a retirement at the age of 48 for nurses employed by Hospital Boards; and the pension of such employees to he computed on the basis of l-45th of-the salary (instead of for each year of service; with a rnaxinmm of 10-451 hs. Any increased contributions required by those amendments to be •net by the Hospital Board, subject to the usual Government subsidy on conributions to the fund. —-Referred to

:he Executive. Waitaki: That the words “or probationers’’ be deleted from section 2 of the National Provident Fund Act 1925; he reason being that the percentage of inrsos who have served the probationary period, and who remain in the service of hospital boards is compararively small, and it would therefore ;eem that registered nurses only should be eligible to join the scheme. This wruld also save a great deal of time wasted, both by Hospital Boards and th..- National Provident Fund Office in refunding premiums to those who have left the service.—Adopted. Waitaki.— That the scale of contributions payable under the National Provident Fund Act 1925 should be revise'! for the reason that it seems inequitable that a person at the age of 45 should have to pay double the amount of premium to one at the age of 25, seeing that Ihe amount of superannuation is based entirely on the number of years’ service.— Referred to the Exe'-'itive. Otago.— That the Nurses’ and Midwives ’ Registration Board be recommended to provide in the regulations made under the authority of the Nurses’ and Midwives’ Registration Act, 1925, that the future course of training for registered nursos shall be four years, of which three v.mrs be devoted, as at present, to general nursing; six months to child welfare (Karitnne); and three Uinnttis to mental hygiene. —Adopted. Otago.— That Section 19 of the Nurses’ and Mpdwivcs’ Registration Act. 1925, be amended by substituting the word “twenty-two” for the word • ‘ twenty-three. ’ ’ —Adopted. Manictoto. — That the Conference be asked to take into consideration the trav<* l ’ling expenses of Hospital Boards allowed by regulations. —Withdrawn. '.Vnbarapa. — That the statu? and salaries cl masseurs and messeuses be defined i’i relation to those of other branches of the nursing profession.— Referred to the Executive for report. Nnrlh Canterbury.— That the Destitute I'erron?’ Act, 1910, be amended as follows: Section s—“ A magistrate may also in his discretion, ante-date any order made under sub-section 2 ot section 5 of the Destitute Persons Act 1910”; Section 51 (8) — the words “and no moneys shall be recovered under this section unless sued for within two years after the same have become due, unless it is proved that the dcG udaut i.t the timo when the moneys became due was of sufficient ability to pay the same,” sho l ’! be repealed; section 51 E. and G.—“by the wife or widow of the person so maintained or relieved”; (F) —‘‘by the ‘near relative’ within the meaning of section 4 of the Act of IfJO, of any person so maintained or relieved”; section 49— the words “at the time erf making of the order” be stru< k out, and the words “is or have been” inserted in place thereof; section 50— “has been or is” after the word “erder” in the fourth lino thereof; section 51— after the word “Is” in the first line thereof the words “or has been”. “Maintenance” in section 2 of the Act, include rhe expense in connection with the confinement of the mother of any child. — Referred to the Executive. Ashburton.— That in view of the fact that the Customs Tariff doos not permit of alcohol (spirits vini root) being imported free of duty by Hospital Boards, when such is to be used in the manufacture of external preparations, i.e., tincture of iodine, picric, in spirit, etc., the Government bo asked to extend the present concession to include the manufacture of external preparation?,— Referred to the Executive,