INVALID IMMIGRANT.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 22 September 1926, Page 5

INVALID IMMIGRANT.

AN AUCKLAND CASE.

(BY TELEGRAPH —PEESS ASSOCIATION,) - . , A UOKLAND, Sept,' 21. ~~'. ", “This is a. striking example, of *th©.' lack of proper medicalexamination -of- * immigrants at Home,” said the chairman (Mr. W. Wallace) at to-night’s. ... meeting of the Auckland -Hospitai " : ' Board, in commenting oh. a base-of an : V‘ assisted immigrant who; is npysi tieiit in the hospital. Dr. Cl E. Maguire, medical-superin-tendent of the reported that the patient was a young woman, 24 years of age, who arrived by the steam-, y*. er Ooririthio under' charge of her . mother, her destination being Mthami ’ (Taranaki), where her brother lived.' -UT Examination .showed that. The-young-,7 woman had been a .chronic, invalid, since, childhood. .• A-vV-Br. Maguire outlined * various "com-' plaints from which the patient was siiftn P fering and said that with such a his-" tory it was difficult to under stand lioW_ she had passed the medical examination! which had .allowed her, to ;receive:.ani .37 assisted passage to New Zealand, Ua- : . : , doubtedly .she would become a charge , on the community. j / " The chairman said, that it seemed-to-Jiim that medical examination iu .Eng- .■>-> land must be very superficial., •.Almost,, any member of the board could haver ‘ s' detected the complaints of this patient. He was sorry for the parents .of Hid. . girl, and what was to be done he ■did; , not know. The girl could not.he .sent/ back to England because her’ - parents!' and her brothers and .sisters were all in New Zealand. The .board r : should"- .- bring the case to the notice of the-’.-’-' (government and ask - it licit "to- place the burden of the 1 girl’s maintenance treatment on the. ratepayers ; of -the!-( Auckland hospital district. , ) 7 -7,7 - Mr. M. J. Coyle : Mihat is the good "'T. of dding that ? We have madesimilar -' 1 complaints to the . Government front’w time to time, and no notice has been : taken. " T _ . The chairman: The 'Government should be made to shoulder the respon--sibility. . .. ,7..;"7 Dr. Maguire said that he mentioned the case to Sir James Allen, when he was in Auckland. Sir James said that every care was taken in England'Tvitkthe appointment .of doctors, to. examine,,; - immigrants, and he hoped this -partie-- 77 •u-lar case would be reported-to the Gpy-717 \eniment so that if the immigrant ■ Ead ! '-V' been passed by . one of- the appointed,’:l doctors, steps would be taken to.haya. ■ him. removed from tbelist. ~ "

The chairman then moved that he -' ■and the secretary should be empowered W to'draft a report on the case, tor the ? Government. Mr. E. H. Potter: Where is the pa-.'' tient now?

The chairman : In hospital.-.and-she will probably be there all her life. " ; y The motion was carried, : ' v "