Hospital System

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XIV, Issue 277, 3 November 1924, Page 3

Hospital System

HONORARY MEDICAL STATES. VIEWS OF THE B.M.A. EVIDENCE IN PALMERSTON INQUIRY. (Per Press Association.) Pailmerston N., Nov. 1. The attitude of tho British Medical Association in the matter of the position of honorary staffs in public hospitals was placed before tho Commissioner, Mr E. Page, S.M., at the conclusion of the hearing of the Bryce case yesterday, by Dr R. Campbell Begg, who watched the proceedings on behalf of the association 1 . The speaker t strongly emphasised tho attitude of th© B.M.A. towards the members of the honorary staff in public hospitals, but pointed' out that in no circumstances was the health of the patients to be jeopardised by any such action. He pointed out that when the Medical Practitioners 1 Bill was being placed before Parliament, and he had been | called upon to give evidence, the argu- j ment had been used that a doctor might be called to an accident or an urgent case and might refuse to attend until he had received, or had been guaranteed, a fee. The association had then decreed that any action of this character would constitufe infamous misconduct in a professional respect. POSITION OF HONORARY STAFFS. “The question of the honorary medical staffs is very unsatisfactory; throughout the whole of the Dornin- • ion,” continued Dr Begg. “Hospital boards look upon their honorary medi-' cal men merely as those who carry out their duties and perform their operations, but they do not regard them as advisers as to any improvement in the aganagement of the institutions. The conviction of the association that the failure of these boards to utilise the services and advice of honorary 'staffs in the way of improving hospitals, and making them fit for"modern requirements, has had more influence than any other factor in keeping the hospitals in Now Zealand in their present state of inefficiency. I say this adviredly, for in many respects the hospitals are inefficient. I “Apart from the treatment of the sick and indigent, one of the very important aspects of a hospital was that scientific knowledge, which was to be gained by the medical men conccrifeft. which could in turn lead to a wider experience in the profession, and better medical service generally. The association favoured the system of honorary staffs under proper conditions, advocated the establishment of the committee hospital system, and divided the people into three classes, poor, middle class, and wealthy. l ' CLASSIFICATION OF PATIENTS. He thought that provision should be made for the treatment of poor people, to whom three guineas was a vast sum. ana said that some indication should be given prior to entry as to how much could be paid. Ho decried what ho called indiscriminate dunning of poor patients by hospital boards in order to improve their financial position. In re,gard to the large niiddloelass, the speaker said many people regarded the public hospital in a similar light to a gaol, and would go to any length to be allowed private treatment. The B.M.A. did not think the profession was justified in alowing these people to go such lengths, for some of them were financially cripped for years as a result of this. It was difficult to find a remedy. Wealthy people who could afford to pay for tho best, should receive the best facilities that were available in the hospital in every way*. ‘‘ By having such system,” concluded Dr Begg, ‘ ‘ which caters for tho whoie of tho community, the hospitals, instead of beinir looked upon with dread, will bo looked upon in their proper light, where sickness is relieved and proper medical attention iaaecured/’